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Friday, February 1, 2008
From the ponds of Minnesota to the Olympic stage, Craig Sarner has learned a lot through the years.
St. Paul, MN
By: Scott Persby
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Photo(s) By: Kyle Danztler/MyActionPortraits.com
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A native of North St. Paul, Craig Sarner brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the game of hockey. Having grown up with North St. Paul Senior High School in his backyard, Sarner turned out to have an outstanding athletic career there lettering in football, hockey and track. Sarner also was awarded All-State honors for his achievements in hockey and track in those years. He was named the Most Valuable Player in the1967 Minnesota State Hockey Tournament and held the record for most assists (9) in a tournament for 27 years before it was broken.
After graduating in 1967 from North, Sarner moved on to play right wing for the University of Minnesota and gained invaluable experience while playing for the legendary coach, Glen Sonmor. Sarner played three years at the University of Minnesota where he posted 59 points (30 goals, 29 assists) in 90 career games. Then in 1972, the call came for the U. S. Olympic Hockey Team. Sarner helped guide Team USA to a Silver Medal at the Sapporo (Japan) Olympics, leading the team in total points while finishing second overall in Olympic scoring with four goals and six assists for a total of ten points.
After taking part in the Sapporo Olympics, Sarner was picked to play for the US in the 1972 Ice Hockey World Championships (Pool B tournament). Later that year, with his amateur status behind him, Sarner signed on as a free agent with the National Hockey League’s Boston Bruins organization. For three years, he was a solid farm team player for the Bruins while making it into a few NHL games. In 1976, Sarner came home to the Twin Cities and played briefly for the World Hockey Association’s Minnesota Fighting Saints before eventually deciding to play in Europe. Sarner first signed on with EC Kolner of Germany and scored 35 goals in 41 games during the 1976-77 season. Sarner played for the Berlin Sports Club, competed for Team USA at the 1979 World Championships and suited up for Switzerland's Davos Club before retiring as a player in 1981. Sarner then moved into the coaching ranks and spent twelve years as a European Pro League coach.
After moving back to the Twin Cities for good, Sarner served eight years as a high school coach for Park Center, Orono, Burnsville and Eden Prairie, along with three years as a head coach in the Midwest High School Elite League.
Today, Sarner continues to spend much of his time at hockey rinks as he is most at home there. For many years he was a player scout for the NHL’s Montreal Canadians and was assigned to watch high school players and undrafted junior players. After his stint with the Canadians, Sarner was named as the Director of Player Personnel for the Sioux Falls Stampede of the United States Hockey League where in his first year, Sarner and the Stampede won the league championship. Under Sarner’s guidance his second year, the Stampede were National Champions. In July 2007, Sarner was named, and is currently serving as, the Director of Player Personnel for the North American Hockey League’s Texas Tornado along with sharing work responsibilities as a customer service representative for a business named JYMRSA, a technology-based company that fights infectious diseases.
Sarner has one son, Brian, who is finishing out his years of military service in Fort Sill, Oklahoma. Having his son far from home has been difficult, as it is for most parents with children in the military. Brian’s time spent in Iraq was the hardest. Sarner could only watch from afar and hope and pray that his son would be okay. After all the wins and successes he’s had on the ice, Sarner knows that those mean nothing in comparison to having his loved ones safe and he anxiously awaits his son’s homecoming.
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