Ice Prowler Hockey Coaches Profile

Jay C. Catherine Former Varsity Head Coach (2006-2008) Former Varsity Assistant Coach Coach (2002-2006) Biography: Jay C. began his hockey career in his hometown of Washington, Pennsylvania (outside of Pittsburgh). He attended Bethany College (1993-1997) in West Virginia, where he served as player/coach of the Club Hockey Team for 4 seasons and also played soccer and lacrosse for the Bison. As a member of the Bethany Soccer program, Jay C. was a part of the 1994 NCAA Division III National Championship team, serving as the team's Play-by-Play Announcer. Upon graduation in 1997, Coach Catherine joined the Wheeling Nailers of the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL) for the 1997-1998 season as the team's Broadcast Assistant, doing color commentary for radio and television broadcasts and assisting the Director of Media Relations. Before his time at Bethany, Jay C. began his coaching career in the Greater Washington Area Parks & Recreation Youth League. He then joined the coaching staff of Canon McMillan High School in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania as an Assistant Coach at practices for the Junior Varsity team. After moving to Columbus in the Fall of 1999, Jay C. joined the Easton Youth Hockey Association (EYHA) where he spent two seasons as Head Coach at the Bantam level, and instructing goaltender clinics for the association. Coach Catherine continues to serve as an independent Goaltending Consultant to several teams in the Central Ohio area at all levels in addition to his coaching duties with the Prowlers. Jay C. joined the Prowler organization as part of Head Coach Marty Laroche's staff in 2002 and was a part of the 2003 and 2004 GCHSCHL Blue Jacket Cup Championships. Under Coach Catherine's tutelage of the goaltenders and defense, the Prowlers saw a team save percentage improvement each season: .875 (2002-03), .885 (2003-04), .895 (2004-05). In 2006, Jay C. took over as the Head Coach of Prowler Hockey after four seasons as the Assistant/Goaltending Coach. Coach Catherine had been involved with the success of the program under Coach Marty Laroche's staff, winning the GCHSCHL Regular Season Championship in 2004 and 2005, representing the GCHSCHL in the first two Buckeye Cup State Championship Tournaments in 2005 and 2006, appearing in four consecutive GCHSCHL Blue Jackets Cup Finals from 2003 through 2006, and winning back-to-back GCHSCHL Blue Jackets Cup Championships in 2003 and 2004. He continued that success as the Head Coach, leading the team to back-to-back GCHSCHL Regular Season Championships in 2007 and 2008, their third GCHSCHL Blue Jackets Cup Championship and fifth consecutive Cup Finals appearance in 2007, and taking the program to the Buckeye Cup Ohio State Championship Tournament in both 2007 and 2008, including it's first Buckeye Cup Ohio State Championship Final Four appearance in 2007. In 2006-2007, Coach Jay C. led the program to its best ever regular season record 28W-3L-5T, and was the first Prowler coach to win all six regular season league series in back-to-back seasons. Coach Jay C. obtained an impressive 50W-12L-10T record in just two seasons, becoming the quickest coach to reach 50 wins with the Prowlers. Coach Catherine also wears the stripes and skates as an on-ice official. He began officiating in 1994 as a member of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey Officials Association (WPHOA), and currently wears the USA Hockey patch as a Level III Certified official and a member of the Columbus Ice Hockey Referee's Association (CIHRA). In addition to his work on the ice, Coach Catherine is also responsible for designing and developing the Ice Prowler's current logo and website, in addition to the Greater Columbus High School Club Hockey League (GCHSCHL) logo and website, and Columbus Junior B Blue Jackets website. In the summer of 2008, Jay C. stepped down behind the Prowler bench to become the USA Hockey ACE Coordinator for the GCHSCHL. Jay C. presently works for Limited Brands as a Senior Programmer Analyst and resides in Westerville, Ohio.