LEWISTON – Between them, Jeff Guay and Ed Harding have either coached or played for 19 different hockey teams, many of them scattered about North America in such diverse haunts as Des Moines, Iowa, Tulsa, Okla., Fresno, Calif., and Cornwall, Ontario, Canada.

Now both former area hockey standouts, Guay at Lewiston High School and Harding with the University of Southern Maine and Maine Mariners, have returned home to work.

At a press conference Friday at City Hall, the Lewiston Maineiacs franchise announced the hiring of several support staff members, including Guay and Harding as assistant coaches. They join Mario Durocher to make up the primary coaching staff of the new Lewiston team.

“We wanted people in this position that know the game of hockey inside and out,” said Durocher. “We wanted people in this job that weren’t afraid to speak up and do things on their own sometimes. I think we got just what we needed in the two that we hired.”

Durocher and General Manager Norm Gosselin conducted interviews with all aspiring candidates.

“It’s not the first interview I’ve ever had to go through,” said Guay, who for two years has been an assistant coach at Lewiston High School. “It’s great to see such a great hockey team coming to this area. We’ve deserved one for a long time, and it’s great to be a part of it now that it’s here.”

Guay started coaching in 1998 after playing for several junior and professional teams following his graduation from Lewiston in 1990.

“You can only play for so long,” said Guay. “This is a significant step for me in coaching, maybe the biggest since I moved back here to coach with Tim (Smith, Lewiston High’s head coach).”

For Ed Harding, the journey back to Maine has followed a similar road. After playing at USM and briefly with the Maine Mariners in 1988-89, Harding took over the head coaching job at Greely High School, remaining there until 1993. After a three-year stint as an assistant at USM, Harding moved west to join the Flagstaff (Ariz.) Mountaineers as head coach and general manager.

Harding briefly returned to Maine as a volunteer assistant with the Pirates before making his way to Tulsa, Okla., via Arkansas.

“I actually took last year off,” said Harding. “I knew there was the possibility of this team coming in, and I wanted to wait and see what happened. As soon as I saw it coming for sure, I hit it hard and was really gunning for this job.”

Other positions announced on Friday included: head statistician and director of off-ice officials Jim Anderschat of South Portland; team doctor Paul Cain of Auburn; education advisor Paul Boucher of Auburn; billet family coordinators Ron Guerin and Renee Bernier of Lewiston; athletic trainer Thomas Bourdon of Windham; office manager Georgette Richard of Lewiston; and director of marketing and communications Robert Mainville of Cape Elizabeth.

The team will begin play in 105 days at the Central Maine Civic Center, which is currently under extensive renovations.

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