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Ex-FBI Director Comey: Trump administration spread ‘lies, plain and simple’

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Dime Bank honors employees

<p>When Brett Riley&#8217;s father, Rob, coached the Springfield Falcons in the AHL from 2010 t0 2012, road trips to play the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins left a lasting impression.</p><p>The elder Riley told his son that Wilkes-Barre/Scranton has one of the best fan bases in hockey, and that point stuck with Brett.</p><p>It also factored into his decision to accept the job as the first head coach of the Wilkes University men&#8217;s ice hockey program, which will begin play in 2018-19.</p><p>&#8220;It made my decision quite easy,&#8221; Riley said. &#8220;A lot of things about Wilkes and the community made it seem like the perfect fit.&#8221;</p><p>The 26-year-old comes to Wilkes after serving as the head coach of the varsity program at the Albany Academy. The South Hamilton, Mass. native played four seasons at Hobart College and is a third generation hockey coach. In addition to two seasons with Springfield, Riley&#8217;s father also coached at Army for 19 years and is currently an amateur scout for the Columbus Blue Jackets.</p><p>Riley&#8217;s grandfather, Jack, coached at West Point for more than 35 years and coached the United States to the gold medal at the 1960 Squaw Valley Olympics.</p><p>Now, Riley will use his coaching background to become the first person to shape the new hockey program at Wilkes.</p><p>&#8220;I&#8217;m really excited about the opportunity to make it my own and build a culture from the ground up,&#8221; he said. &#8220;It really appealed to me.&#8221;</p><p>Riley will spend a full year recruiting before Wilkes begins its first season competing in NCAA Division III. While hockey skills will be important in the players he recruits, so to is their character away from the rink.</p><p>That emphasis is something he learned from his father during his time coaching at Army.</p><p>&#8220;Leadership and character go a long way,&#8221; Riley said. &#8220;I&#8217;ve found that the most squared away guys off the ice were also the most squared away guys on the ice.&#8221;</p><p>As far as what his team will look like on the ice, Riley said the emphasis will be on strong defense.</p><p>&#8220;We&#8217;ll be competitive in the sense of playing all 200 feet of the ice. We&#8217;ll have a commitment to defense and build out from there,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Our team will play the game the right way.&#8221;</p><p>Riley said he&#8217;ll focus his recruiting efforts in New England and Canada, specifically the Ottawa and Toronto areas. But he didn&#8217;t limit it to those areas, adding that the growth of hockey locally could be a focal point as well.</p><p>&#8220;You don&#8217;t want to miss a local kid. I will be at Wyoming Seminary and Wilkes-Barre Knights games among others,&#8221; Riley said. &#8220;It&#8217;s such an appeal to local players to have this opportunity right in their own backyard.&#8221;</p><p>Both Wilkes ice hockey teams will call the Toyota SportsPlex at Coal Street Park home for practices and games thanks to the University&#8217;s partnership with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins organization. Riley said the partnership will be a major benefit for recruiting and it also played a role in his decision to join Wilkes.</p><p>&#8220;The opportunity to partner with one of the most successful organization&#8217;s in sports was really appealing to me,&#8221; he said.</p><p>Another element that Riley is looking forward to is the rivalry with King&#8217;s College, which will debut its men&#8217;s and women&#8217;s ice hockey teams for the 2017-18 season. Riley said the rivalry will be beneficial for the growth of the sport in the area.</p><p>&#8220;The atmosphere of a competitive, cross-town rivalry will be a great atmosphere. I&#8217;m looking forward to it,&#8221; Riley said. &#8220;</p><p><ins>For other sports stories, <a href="https://www.timesleader.com/category/sports" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">click here</a>.</ins></p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Riley </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/web1_riley.jpg</photo0><caption0>Riley </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Tom Venesky</p><p>tvenesky@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Tom Venesky at 570-991-6395 or on Twitter @TomVenesky</p></shirttailMeta></div>

New Wilkes hockey coach happy to partner with WBS Pens