By LILY DOOLIN
Jim Quinlan’s first run as head coach of the Saugus High School hockey team was one for the books.
He only hopes he can come close to repeating it in his second act.
Quinlan is back to what he sees as his place behind the bench, this time at Bishop Fenwick, a school that, judging from its last two coaching hires, is interested in taking its athletic program to much higher ground.
“I got the itch to get back in,” said Quinlan.
Quinlan led the Saugus Sachems to three consecutive state finals, snagging the title in 2003 and 2004 but losing to Boston Latin in game that went to overtime in 2005. By the time he ended his career as head coach of Saugus, Quinlan’s overall record amounted to an impressive 106-26-11.
Quinlan then spent a few years as an assistant coach for Malden Catholic before stepping away from the game entirely, watching his kids finish their collegiate careers. Occasionally, Quinlan would also go back to the high school sports scene and watch some of his former teams. It was from watching those games that Quinlan realized he no longer wanted to just be in the stands anymore. “Maybe I was just born to coach,” said Quinlan. “I miss being behind the bench, I miss coaching.”
Quinlan is taking over the team from Chuck Allen, who brought Fenwick to its very first Division 1 playoff appearance after having struggled with the transition for a few years prior.
“I want to keep on bringing that program higher,” said Quinlan. “I’m up to the challenge.”
Although the game of hockey has evolved since Quinlan was involved in the sport, nothing has changed for him about it it’s still the same game he grew to enjoy.
“I love the game. I’ve been around it my whole life,” Quinlan said.
Wasting no time, Quinlan is already setting up time to meet with his staff and players in hopes to get familiar with the program and coach to the best of his abilities.
“This job isn’t just something I do a few months out of the year,” said Quinlan. “It’s something I do all 12 months of the year.”
Quinlan is happy to have found a home at Fenwick, which Quinlan believes is the “diamond in the rough” of the Catholic Central League.
“You can see they really care, and that they’re really proud of their program,” said Quinlan.
“I’m going to give one hundred and twenty percent of my knowledge of hockey to them, and hopefully I can do a great job.”
Quinlan is the second coach with a championship pedigree that Fenwick athletic director Dave Woods has hired since the winter season ended. In May, Fenwick named Kevin Moran as the boys basketball coach. Moran coached St. Mary’s to a boys state championship in 2012.
