The Red Deer Rebels are going with a familiar name to fill a vacancy on the scouting staff.

Shaun Sutter, who spent the last two seasons as an assistant coach with the Regina Pats, has been hired as a senior scout with the Rebels, after long time scout Dale McMullin resigned recently.

Sutter, son of former Rebels coach Brian and nephew of team owner Brent, played for the Lethbridge Hurricanes, Medicine Hat Tigers and Calgary Hitmen during his four year WHL career and also played professional hockey for eight seasons before joining Regina’s coaching staff.

He was also drafted in the fourth round of the 1998 NHL Entry Draft by the Calgary Flames.

“Shaun is an intelligent, hard working young man with a very good hockey background as a player and coach in the WHL,“ said Randy Peterson, director of scouting and player personnel for the Rebels.

“I look forward to working closely with Shaun and I’m excited for what he will bring to our scouting staff.“

Rebels head coach and vice president of hockey operations, Jesse Wallin, says they knew the departure of McMullin, who had been with the Rebels since 2002, was a possibility and moved quickly to fill his spot.

“”We have been aware of the possibility of losing Dale for some time, so the succession planning process has been ongoing,“ said Wallin in announcing Sutter`s hiring.

“This process has revealed Shaun to be the perfect fit to fill this position. It was important for us to find youth; someone who’d bring enthusiasm and a fresh perspective, but also someone who will grow in the organization and has the potential to take over the lead role should Randy ever move on. Shaun certainly fits the criteria, and combined with his experience in the game and in our league, I’m confident he will be a tremendous asset to the organization.”

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