Pallin pursues dream with Wranglers

It's not hard to spot Rob Pallin on the Las Vegas Wranglers' bench.

Just look for the quiet guy with the cool hair and the sport coat.

The Chisholm, Minn., native, who played college hockey at Minnesota-Duluth and spent 10 years playing professionally in Europe, got the break every aspiring coach dreams of. His first full season as an assistant to Wranglers coach Ryan Mougenel has been more rewarding than Pallin could have imagined.

"It has been an amazing experience," Pallin said. "The guys have been great to me, and Ryan's given me a chance to chase my dream."

A year ago, Pallin, 45, was coaching UNLV's club hockey team. Mougenel and Pallin knew each other through Las Vegas' small hockey community, and Pallin helped out Mougenel late last season.

When Mougenel had a chance to bring someone on full-time last summer, he knew exactly who he wanted.

"Rob's got a gift of being able to softly communicate with the players," Mougenel said. "He's also the perfect complement to me. I'm a yeller, and he's a calming influence on me."

Chemistry is equally important within a coaching staff, and Pallin said he knew he could be an asset to Mougenel and the Wranglers, who dropped a home-and-home series with Bakersfield following a 4-3 loss to the Condors on Sunday in front of 4,108 at Orleans Arena.

"I'm so much into positive reinforcement," Pallin said. "These kids aren't making a million bucks. But they're all trying to get out of Vegas and make it to the NHL. I'm just trying to help them get there."

Pallin, a former defenseman, said it's not about changing the way a player plays at the ECHL level. It's more about tweaking things and refining skills.

"There's greater attention to detail at this level," he said. "When I was coaching UNLV, I was still teaching the game at its most fundamental level. Here, the guys have the fundamentals down. It's more about pointing out the little things.

"So far, it has been very fulfilling. Our guys work extremely hard and they're very coachable. Sometimes though, the season goes by so quick, it passes you by."

Pallin came to Las Vegas in 1999 to play roller hockey for Chris McSorley. But when the league folded, Pallin decided to stay rather than go back to Germany and play one more season. He got involved with the Las Vegas Mustangs youth hockey program and coached the midget team (ages 15-16). That led to the UNLV gig and, eventually, the Wranglers.

Pallin also runs the rink at the Fiesta Rancho after previously overseeing the old Santa Fe's rink operations. Pallin said the Fiesta has been a profitable venture, bringing in more than $1 million in revenue last year.

"I've got the greatest job in Las Vegas," he said, preferring to combine his two current occupations.

But if Mougenel was able to move on to the American Hockey League and Pallin could either go with him as his assistant or perhaps be promoted to coach of the Wranglers, he might have to rethink his claim.

"Right now, I'm not even thinking in those terms," he said. "My focus is on this year and this group of guys. We're trying to win a championship, and that's all I'm worried about.

"But I won't lie to you. Everyone who plays or coaches wants to make it to the NHL someday. Hopefully, we'll have the kind of success that will give our players, Ryan and myself that opportunity to move up."

Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913. Follow him on Twitter: @stevecarprj.