New coach, 25, looks to keep Fox Chapel hockey program humming

By: Jerin Steele
Saturday, October 19, 2024 | 11:01 AM

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Seven years ago, Ryan Loebig was a key member of the Plum hockey team that won the 2017 Class 2A Penguins Cup.

Now he’s looking to lead Fox Chapel toward achieving the same goal as a coach.

Loebig spent the last two years as the coach of the Foxes’ junior varsity team and now he’s taken over the varsity job from Cam Raidna.

At 25 years old, Loebig will be one of the younger coaches in the PIHL.

“I think the player-coach relationship is important and being that we’re closer in age I think makes that easier in some aspects, but it can also make some things harder,” Loebig said. “Compared to the JV level, it’s not as easy to have guys buy into what you’re trying to do for a variety of reasons, but with this group of guys, it has been fairly easy. There’s a good bit of leadership on this team that has the same goals that we have as coaches.”

The Foxes won in Loebig’s debut behind the bench, 4-2 against Baldwin on Oct. 7.

Loebig enjoys the developmental aspect of coaching, something he found rewarding at the junior varsity level.

Before he took the varsity job, he spoke with Raidna about making sure that development would still be a major focus and was assured it was, along with more of a focus on winning games.

“I do like the increased stress on winning,” Loebig said. “It’s not the only thing at this level, because development is at a forefront, but I am by nature a pretty competitive guy, so I’ve enjoyed that as well.”

Loebig has four captains.

Senior defenseman Tyler Goldstein is the team’s captain, while fellow senior blueliner Trip Goehring is a full-time alternate captain. Senior forwards Liam Wiseman and Dom Casile will share the second alternate captain duties. Wiesman will wear the ‘A’ at home and Casile will do so for road games.

Loebig likes his leadership group because it’s well-rounded, with each individual bringing different qualities to the table.

“Tyler was a no-brainer as captain,” Loebig said. “He served as an alternate captain last year. He makes communication really easy and is almost an extension of the coaching staff. When I look at Trip, I see a guy that has the drive to win and be the best player he can be. He’s the type of player I relate with because he loves playing the game. That mentality brings up the rest of the team. Liam and Dom are both highly skilled players and they’re very experienced. They’re the type of players that hinge how the rest of the team performs. If they’re really flying, the rest of the team is going to be too.”

Fox Chapel qualified for the playoffs last season but lost to Norwin, 5-2, in the first round. Prior to last year, the Foxes were a regular in the Class A playoffs and made a run to the finals in 2022-23, where they fell to Kiski.

“Cam did a really good job of setting up the program to be just that, a program, from varsity to JV to the middle school team,” Loebig said. “That sustains success no matter what classification we are playing in. I’m excited to be able to take that over and continue making this a program that can sustain success.”

Jerin Steele is a freelance writer

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