This week Kingston Frontenacs General Manager and Head Coach Paul McFarland joined Jeff Gard of JG Sports Media to discuss his experiences in Junior and Major Junior hockey, as well as his hiring this off-season by the Fronts, for a second stint with the Ontario Hockey League franchise.

During the interview, Paul and Jeff discussed the new partnership between the Cougars and Frontenacs that was announced this off-season. "Well, I think it's great for both organizations," said McFarland on the partnership "ultimately we want to help Cobourg by giving them some of our younger players, who are obviously not quite ready for the OHL-level, but put them in a position where they're still going to be playing against older players and have a chance to get better on a daily basis at a great level." 

McFarland mentioned the proximity of Cobourg to Kingston as an advantage of the partnership, "They're just a couple hours down the road, so it's very easy for us to have either him come down for a practice or see them play games or practices, etc." The partnership with the Fronteacs paid off for the Cougars this season with over-age player Justin Pringle coming from Kingston to captain the Cougars, and with 2020 5th round pick Gage Heyes signing and playing with the team during the return to play and pre-season series vs Whitby. "I've probably been there 6 or 7 times this year," said McFarland "I know Cobourg played some games in a bubble this year against Whitby, so I've been down there to watch Gage Heyes, one of our top prospects."

Paul mentioned his relationship with Cougars Director of Hockey Operations Bob Breckles as an asset, with them being in constant communication on players, and being on the same page regarding Kingston's prospects in Cobourg. "Paul is a tremendous person to work with, and the partnership with Kingston is a big asset for our program," said Breckles. "We're very appreciative of the help Kingston provides in recruiting young players to our program, but also for them working with our staff and providing them with resources to improve our program here in Cobourg."

You can listen to Paul's full interview and comments on the partnership with the Cougars at the link below.

Full Interview: https://jgsportsmedia.com/2021/02/01/audio-interview-with-paul-mcfarland/