Long-serving Manchester Storm defenceman and assistant coach Dallas Ehrhardt says his time at the club has been a wild ride, but it’s special to be part of.

Ehrhardt became the Elite League’s outright ninth place all-time appearance maker at the weekend as his two appearances on the ice took him past former Edinburgh Capitals forward Martin Cingel to make it 486 outings.

And although his appearances have been few and far between in this campaign, he says his team-mates made it easy for him at the weekend.

“It’s been a wild ride so far with all the different chapters during my time here,” he said. “It’s became a home for me and my family and one that’s always growing.

“Every year has been different but there’s been great people around working hard to keep pushing this team to improve and strive for better which is something special to be part of.

“It’s been nice to be able to go out there and play some games this year. My body was feeling good after the weekend, but luckily, I’ve some great teammates that make it easy on me.”

Ehrhardt has focussed more on coaching this season, working closely with head coach Cameron Critchlow and Mike Morin as he starts on the next stage of his career.

He’s certainly enjoying that side of things as he sees the team from a different viewpoint and is pleased to see the hard work pay off with some good results along the way so far.

“It’s been a lot of but fun hours but working with Cam and Mike, I couldn’t ask for better guys to be working with,” he added.

“Cam really stepped into his role with great ideas and a vision for how his team would find success and being able to work towards that goal is a fun challenge.

“It’s an education that will never really end. Everyday you’re faced with different learning experiences and challenges which makes every day fresh. I think the goal is to be better every day, whatever the improvement may be, make it and move on to the next one.

“As for the guys, its great to see them getting rewarded for the effort they’ve put in since day one.

“They’re doing everything you ask for and doing it the right way which has impressed Cam, Mike and me from day one.

“Everyone can look around and see we’re working towards the same goal and there’s a lot of belief in this room to what we can accomplish. When you get that buy in good things happen.”

By: Craig Anderson