Jason Guerriero is back home.
Not his Manorville, N.Y., hometown, mind you, although that's only a few hours away. Rather, his former collegiate residence of Northeastern University, where he starred for the Huskies for four seasons in the early 2000s and will now serve as an assistant coach to head coach Jerry Keefe.
“It was always a goal,” admitted Guerriero in mid-August of returning to his Boston-based alma mater. “When I was playing, I knew I wanted to coach. In time I made the transition, and I thought, ‘I’d love to go back to NU.’ ”
He also explained how coaching is a numbers game at the NCAA Division 1 level, with just about 60 head coaching and 120 assistant positions available.
“It’s tough to get into, but I’m excited to get back,” he admitted. “It was timing. Jerry called and offered me a job, and I didn’t hesitate.”
The Huskies are happy to have Guerriero back in Boston.
"We are very excited to welcome Jason back to Northeastern," Keefe said. "He has a proven track record as a great teacher and developer for our student-athletes. He had a lot of success as a player at Northeastern, and now we are looking forward to seeing his impact on our program as a coach."
Guerriero, 41, has returned to Northeastern after previous coaching stints at Holy Cross, Yale and Brown. He spent the past eight years coaching in the Ivy League, the last six at Brown and the final two of those as associate coach for the Bears. Now he's back on Huntington Avenue along with his wife, Jennifer, a physician who was a track-and-field athlete with the Huskies, and their children.
“It was something we said in coming back,” admitted Guerriero, who was also inducted into the Northeastern Athletics Hall of Fame this year. “It’s like we never left.”
Growing up on Long Island, where he attended Islanders games with his father, the 5-foot-8 Guerriero later skated for the Syracuse Junior Crunch, then played one year with Dubuque of the USHL. After two high-scoring seasons with the NAHL's expansion Texas Tornado, where he totaled 144 points and 193 penalty minutes in 100 games, he skated for Northeastern from 2001 to 2005, although he had a few other options when it came to college.
He took an official visit to Ferris State, which offered him a full scholarship, while both New Hampshire and NU offered him a half-scholarship. At the time, UNH was averaging 20-25 wins a year and was about to become an NCAA tournament fixture — but in the end, it came down to the prospect of almost-instantaneous playing time at Matthews Arena that sold him on NU.
“I was grateful for the offers, but Northeastern gave me the best opportunity, as far as making an impact immediately,” said Guerriero. “I felt I could make a difference when I got there, but it wasn’t easy.”
He started on the Huskies’ third line, then steadily made his way up the depth chart to the first line, where he remained for the bulk of his college career.
“I was very appreciative, and lucky,” he said, “but I put in the time and effort to get on the first line, and stay there.”
In 145 appearances all-time with the Huskies, Guerriero tallied 49 goals and 99 assists for 148 points, along with 102 PIM. As a freshman, he notched 27 assists and 36 points, helping NU to a 19-17-3 record. As a senior captain, he led the Huskies with 31 assists and 48 points, one year after pacing the pack with 35 points as a junior.
After college, Guerriero played six years professionally, including 148 AHL contests, before wrapping up his career in Denmark in 2011. He then got right into coaching, at Holy Cross under head coach Paul Pearl.
“I learned a ton from him, and that I could do this,” said Guerriero. “It took time, and experience.”
He also cited Yale head coach Keith Allain, whom Guerriero also worked with on several occasions with USA Hockey.
“Learning from him was a real eye-opener,” said Guerriero. “It was unbelievable, and I owe him a lot.”
He also mentioned learning from his fellow assistants during his tenure at Brown, and from other coaches who mentored him and imparted their own lessons to him.
“Coaching hockey is coaching hockey,” said Guerriero. “There are different players, but at the end of the day, I’m a coach. There’s a lot of coaches I played for — Lane Lambert, who’s now with the Islanders, and Claude Noel, who coached in the NHL — that I took something from.”
The seeds of one day taking his place behind the bench were sown at Northeastern.
“As a player, Jamie Rice recruited me (to NU), and he was why I got into coaching,” added Guerriero. “The way he treated me, I became a better player and person.”
It also helped him on the road to being a better coach.
“I was big on development, as a smaller guy, to make players better every day and grow as a team, and (for them) to play at the next level,” said Guerriero. “Jerry has done that, and I’ll help guys to develop, while working with the defense and penalty kill this year.”
The Huskies are coming off a 25-victory campaign, a Hockey East regular-season title, and their fourth NCAA tournament appearance in seven years. They’ll also be looking to recapture the coveted Beanpot Tournament trophy after their three-year winning streak was snapped in February.
“I’ve tried to meet most of the guys here, and I’ve watched a lot of video,” chuckled Guerriero. “It’s a pretty exciting group, one of the youngest in college hockey, but it has the makings of a really good team.
“I’m excited to work with these guys,” he added. “There are some special hockey players, and it’s a good team that Jerry has presented here, for sure.”
One that a not-so-old alumnus hopes to make even better.
