Editing Alex Kaufman (section)

==Early Coaching Career (1977 - 1988)==
In 1977, the [[Valorian Hockey League]] was founded. Kaufman decided to return home, joining his province's team, the Sailors, as an assistant coach. He remained with the Sailors in this capacity until 1982, when he was offered the head coach job with the [[Springfield Bullets]].

Kaufman managed the Bullets for the next three seasons, finishing 11th, 14th, and 11th respectively.

At the end of his third season, Kaufman moved to coach [[Vermont (VHF team)|Vermont]] on a three year contract. He led the team, which had finished 12th in the past two seasons, to an 8th place finish. In his second season in charge, he stunned with an excellent performance that saw Vermont nearly qualifying, finishing 5th. In his third season, Vermont dipped back to 7th, however Kaufman's impressive showings had been enough to catch the attention of the Sailors, who had him on their shortlist to replace manager [[Garrett Jacobsen]].