Feature Story
Guyer family tradition
continues
By Melissa Zeleny
For most tried and true Minnesotans,
hockey is a way of life. If you are a member of the Guyer
family, it’s a long-standing family tradition.
Nestled in the heart of the
Growing up in quaint
A standout all-state player at Greenway
High School, Guyer went on to play for Gus
Hendrickson during the coach’s last season at the University of Minnesota
Duluth in 1981-82.
After
graduating in 1985, Guyer began his extensive career
that included head coach positions at Mora High School (1985-87), Chisholm High
School (1988-90) and Greenway High School from 1990-2003. During the offseason,
Guyer also had the opportunity to coach for the Team
Minnesota Select 17 Festival from 1995-2000. Guyer’s
career record as a coach is 225-148-8, which includes a 181-105-7 record at
Greenway.
During his illustrious stint at Greenway,
Guyer won many awards and honors including: Tier II
State Champions 1991-92 , Section 7A Coach of the Year 1994-95 , Section 7AA
Coach of the Year 1995-96, Class 7AA Region 7AA Champions 2000-01, Class AA 3rd
Place Finish 2000-01,Iron Range Conference Champions 1994-95, 1998-99,
1999-2000, 2000-01.
Guyer and his wife Tessie, high school
sweethearts who grew up three miles apart, have three sons: Gino, Andrew (Drew)
and Alex, all of whom were prototypical rink rats, “learning to skate one step
after learning to walk.”
Gino recalls backyard battles with his
brother, Andrew, and cousin, Jamie. They would be out there as late as
midnight. Sometimes the neighbors would call and complain because they were
trying to get some sleep
In his junior year, Gino and close friend
Andy Sertich led the Raiders to a third-place finish
in the Class AA boys hockey tournament where Gino was the event’s leading
scorer. Both players considered forgoing their senior year to play junior
hockey, but playing high school hockey with his friends in Coleraine
took precedence.
“I have a lot of friends here who are important to me. You only get one
senior year,” Gino told the Duluth Tribune-News in July of 2001 of his
decision to finish his senior year as a captain for Greenway, turning down (for
the second consecutive year) a spot on the U.S. National Development Team based
in Ann Arbor, Mich.
In 2001, Guyer
was selected ahead of Minnesota’s Mr. Hockey, Marty Sertich
of Roseville, by a 6-4 vote, and named the Associated Press Minnesota player of
the Year. In 2002, it came as no surprise to anyone, except the modest Gino,
that he was named the state’s 18th Mr. Hockey. After hearing the news, Gino told
the Minneapolis StarTribune, “It was like,
‘Wow’ when I heard my name called,” Gino said. “I was the lucky one who got
picked.”
Following high school, Gino – a fifth
round pick (165th overall) by the Dallas Stars in the 2003
Andrew played a few seasons in the USHL
while Alex, a senior at Greenway – who shares the senior Guyer’s
quick smile and easy-going nature – is playing for his father on the Upper
Midwest Elite League’s Team North while also leading the Greenway football team
as quarterback and captain.
Alex, who admits that he “looked up to
both of his brothers growing up, going to their games and watching them
dominate” enjoys playing in the Elite League and being coached by his father.
Pat admits Alex might not be used to his coaching face.
When Alex commented after Team North’s
first game, “I’ve never seen you like this before,” Pat quipped with his
trademark smile,. “You’ve never seen me coach before.”
As the only Guyer
child who did not have dad as a high school coach, Alex pokes fun at Pat,
joking that “After the games, he’ll coach me”.
In a house filled with testosterone,
hockey equipment includes a chair and nightstand made of old hockey sticks,
bins of equipment and a basement of memorabilia, Tessie
quickly learned the ropes of being a hockey Mom. “I think she’s learned the game and become a
great hockey Mom,” credits Alex.
“Seeing how fun it’s been, she doesn’t
have any regrets,” says Pat, who quickly awards Tessie
with helping in all of their success. “For a few years we had kids at three
different levels. They played 150 games while she was working full time,
finishing her RN degree and chasing the kids from Moorhead to Warroad.”
When asked if Pat would have been
disappointed if one of his son’s had opted not to play hockey, without missing
a beat Guyer answers,
“not a bit,” adding that, “We’re as proud of them as a person, proud of
them for college, for school as we are of them for sports.”
Alex agrees that the decision to lace up
skates came naturally to him. Pat further explains, “Family is important to us.
God, school and trying to prioritize. We’re proud of where we are from; we have
a long history here and love being from a small town.”
Each Guyer is
quick to admit that they are a close family who talk every day and truly seem
to enjoy one another’s company.
As to what the future holds, as a Husky
and Bulldog fan, Alex hopes to be able to continue to play while Pat hints that
once the season is over, a 25th anniversary cruise or trip to Mexico sans
skates and players might be in store for he and Tessie.
As for the possibility of grandchildren, Pat laughs with a twinkle in his eye,
“We’ll have to marry them off first.”
Whatever the case, with hockey in their
blood, it’s a sure thing that we will see more sweaters with the name Guyer
stitched on the back in years to come.
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