A familiar face is now behind the bench of the Swift Current Home Hardware U18 AAA Legionnaires.

Earlier this week Vangaurd's Todd Hornung took over the reins as the team's head coach, fulfilling a role he previously served around a decade ago.

"It's not my first time around the league, so it makes it a little bit easier to jump in," he said Thursday morning. "It's a chance for me to get to work with another level. I see this as a team in the long-term I'm interested in and get a chance to see some of the players now."

Hornung and the Legionnaires didn't even have time to practice before the squad took to the ice in Saskatoon last night to face a tough Blazers squad.

"I think the good thing about it was it happened so quick, it was just get in and go to work," he said. "You don't really have time to assess and think about it. It's not like you're coming in during the preseason and you've got time to work the kinks out. It's like you're in a playoff game right from the get-go. That way it was nice, get to the rink and play hockey and try and get a result."

While the southwest product didn't skate for the team now known as the Legionnaires, he did play AAA hockey for Swift Current when it was a league filled with 16 and 17-year-olds as a callup. He then went on to play three full seasons for the Portland Winter Hawks of the WHL.

"I think the experience of playing always helps as a coach," he said. "It's easy for me to relate to what these kids are going through not only on the ice but off. They're faced with different challenges all the time, and a lot of those challenges haven't changed since I played back in the day."

Currently, the Legionnaires are one point out of the final playoff spot in the Saskatchewan Male U18 AAA Hockey League after dropping four straight games. They have two games left on the schedule this season.

"Hopefully I can help [them] make a push to get a playoff spot," he said.

This will be the third stint for Hornung behind the Legionnaires bench as he recently served as an assistant coach just a few seasons ago.