Stephen R. Sylvanie / Special to the Home News
Leroy Garcia, left, whips a pass through the legs of Rob Wilson (center) to a teammate during a Las Vegas Aces team practice at the Las Vegas Roller Hockey Cener on Dec. 14. At right is netminder Darrel Kinnear closely watching the play.
Friday, Dec. 19, 2008 | midnight
Adam Stio was a teenager when he coached his first hockey team — a roller hockey squad in New Jersey.
Some 15 years later, the southwest Las Vegas resident is set to coach the Las Vegas Aces roller hockey team when it opens the season Jan. 16 at the Las Vegas Roller Hockey Center.
"Coaching is like a drug. Once it gets in you, you can't just stop," he said. "I love it. It's so much fun."
Stio, 30, started coaching when he was 14 years old and working at a rink in Wallington, N.J.
"A team of 10-11 year old kids needed a coach, so I stepped behind the bench," he said. "I showed them how to play, because I had few years of playing experience. I guess I got the bug from that."
Stio continued his playing career and reached the professional North American Roller Hockey Championship league, but stopped playing when he was 21 to focus on coaching.
His first job was as an assistant coach with the Elmira (N.Y.) Jackals in the United Hockey League. He spent several years working in the minor leagues with both ice hockey and roller hockey teams.
When he moved to Las Vegas in 2007, however, he wasn't sure what his coaching future held.
"The ice hockey jobs were all taken and I wasn't sure what to do, but I didn't want to be done coaching," he said.
That's when the position with the Aces became available.
Dan Corsetea, owner of the Las Vegas Roller Hockey Center and Las Vegas Aces general manager, said hiring Stio as coach wasn't a tough decision.
"When we decided to get a team going, Adam was someone I knew would be able to take on the task of coaching and help build a successful team," Corsetea said.
The Aces held a camp Dec. 12 to 14 and played an exhibition against UNLV.
"We lost, but we'd only been together for a few hours really," Stio said. "In years past when I've been coaching, I've always had a starting point — a couple key players to build around. We're still trying to get some of those players."
Aces defenseman Mike Downey played for Stio on the Hystyk Extremes, a New Jersey-based squad of the Professional Indoor Hockey Association, in 2004.
"I'm excited to play for Adam again, especially as we're trying to get a new organization put together," Downey said. "I had just moved out here when he contacted me about joining the team. He's a good coach and knows how to motivate his players. This is going to be fun."
The season begins Jan. 16 and runs through May 10. The Aces are one of four teams in the American Inline Hockey League's Southwest Division. The others are in Tucson, Ariz., Phoenix and El Paso, Texas.
Brent Hinckley can be reached at 990-7822 or [email protected].
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