Coaching hockey for more than 20 years, Paul Willett is said to bring great things to the Albert Lea girl’s hockey team this upcoming 2010-11 season. His reputation has preceded him, and that reputation is that of one of the top power skating and skill development teachers in the upper Midwest. He first came to Albert Lea in May of 2008 as head coach of the Albert Lea Thunder. The junior hockey team was started by Barry Soskin in April of 2008. Also leading the team was Jim Perkins, who was the director of hockey operations. Yet soon after becoming coach, Willett resigned because of differences with the owners. Two years later Willett heard about the opening for a coaching position as the Albert Lea High School girls varsity hockey coach. Finding out about the opening this past summer, Willett contacted athletic director Clay Anderson opening. “I thought they were a really good group of kids and I wanted to work with them,” Willett said. Though starting off a little rocky with three losses and a win, the team is getting better. “Our goal is to improve every time we get on the ice,” Willett said. Willett changed the system from what previous Coach Brian Blatti had used in the past. “It’s going to take us awhile to get it, but I think we will win more once we do,” said captain of the girls hockey team Lauren Draayer. Paul Willett is worldly known for his two books. The “Hockey Coach’s Guide to Small-Area Games” and “Small Area Games for Hockey.” Both books have been used by coaches as tools to help teach small areas become better teams and better individual hockey players. The “Hockey Coach’s Guide to Small-Area Games” is theory on the whats and whys of hockey, while his second book is all drills. This book includes 32 drills and 96 illustrations to help better the team. Though he had started selling the book, he decided to put it online for free so all coaches could use this tool. The book has become so widely known it is now being translated into Russian and sold in Russia. Willett has brought many teams to victory, including the Minnesota State University girls hockey program. In their 2008-09 season the team won its first playoff series. Also, two of Willett’s former players will be participating in the 2010 Olympics this winter in Vancouver. “I think he is really experienced and he will teach us a lot,” Draayer said. Also on his Willett’s resume was a coaching job at Mound Westonka High School in Mound, Minn., as well as being the Vice President and President-elect of the Minnesota Hockey Coaches Association. Willett has played hockey since the age of 5. He got into coaching because he thought hockey had been good to him. Though he has been many places teaching different teams, Willett is happy here. “Maybe when I was younger I would have set a goal to teach Division I hockey, but now I am perfectly happy coaching our girls,” Willett said.