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Canadian out for playoffs as INS denies visa extension

Wednesday, April 02, 2003

By Pohla Smith, Post-Gazette Sports Writer

Immigration law has benched Forge Coach John Becanic, a Canadian citizen, only days before the start of the North American Hockey League playoffs.

	There will be no teaching or coaching for Forge Coach John Becanic when the playoffs begin Friday. (Matt Freed, Post-Gazette)

Becanic's application for an extension of his temporary work permit was denied by the U.S. Department of Justice, and there is no appeal process. That means he cannot coach the team, which begins the playoffs Friday at Island Sports Center with a best-of-three series against the Capital Centre Pride. Assistant coach Jay Varady will serve as interim head coach of the Junior-A hockey team.

"It's awful timing," Becanic said yesterday. "But we made a statement at the beginning of the year that no one person, including me, was more important than the rest of the team. Now the proof's in the pudding.

"I told the players, 'If I did a good job with you guys, then things will move along just fine.' ... If things don't go well, it's a reflection of me, not Coach Varady or the players."

Becanic can legally stay in the United States as the spouse of someone with a work permit; he just can't work. His wife, Rhonda, is a physical therapist. Becanic said he'll be in the stands for the playoffs.

Becanic's immigration attorney, Geoff Leibl, of Los Angeles, said Becanic's application for a permit extension fell under a vague part of the immigration laws that allow for individual interpretation by officers of the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

"Unlike professional hockey teams, there's no real clear-cut visa for someone doing a job for amateur," Leibl said in a telephone interview. "[Amateur] players have trouble getting visas, coaches, general managers. It's a gray area. We just ran into an officer who felt John didn't qualify. It's purely a discretionary call.

"Most of the times we're successful, but the INS isn't completely wrong to say no. This officer just took a harder line than others."

Leibl said the adjudicating officer was not named in the paperwork.

Becanic has worked in the United States since 1996. He said he has had two extensions and three renewals.

Coincidentally, Becanic's wife is in the process of applying for a green permanent-residency card. If granted, it would make Becanic's work-permit problem moot. He would become eligible to work in the United States as a member of the green-card holder's family.

"Nurses and physical therapists have expedited consideration," Leibl said. "He should get permission to work in three or four months and be ready to coach next year's team."

Becanic said: "We actually applied back in August, when it expired. It took this long to get a response. ... If we'd gotten five more weeks out of it, we'd have taken care of it in the summer."

He said last week that he hoped to remain in the city permanently. "I like Pittsburgh," he said.

Varady and the Forge players took the same attitude about playing without Becanic.

"At first it was a shock because we have to go in the playoffs without our coach," said co-captain and defenseman Dennis Kirstein. "But then I thought, you know what? We've worked our butts off so far this season. We'll continue to work our butts off."

Varady said he will miss Becanic, "his best friend and mentor. But we're moving forward. We know what we have to do. We just want to play well in the playoffs and achieve our goals, which is now to win the first rounds of the playoffs."