Alberni Valley Minor Hockey

DAN SEXTON

Coach - Alberni Valley PeeWee Bulldogs

Sexton has been coaching in AVMHA off and on for 13 years. Born and raised in the Alberni Valley, Sexton started playing Minor Hockey in Atom Recreation at the age of 9. He quickly moved up playing competitive the following season in Atom Rep and continued until his first year Midget.

In 1982 he moved to Victoria, B.C to play for the ‘Victoria Racquet Club’ for one exciting and extremely busy year. The beginning of the season, Sexton was selected to the ‘Island Selects’ and played in the ‘Mac’s Midget Super Series’. Mid-way through the season, he was selected to the ‘Junior Olympic Program’ (now called the World U17). The end of that season, the ‘Victoria Racquet Club’ played in the AAA Midget Provincials and Sexton was then picked up by Junior A ‘Victoria Cougars’. He played for the Cougars for 4 seasons, beginning in 1983 and ending in 1988.

Sexton finished the first 3 seasons for the Victoria Cougars winning the ‘Western Hockey League’s’ ‘Best Defensive Forward Award’. Sexton split his last year in the WHL, playing for the ‘Regina Pats’ and the ‘Portland Winter Hawks’. He then found himself at a tryout with the Los Angeles Kings in 1987.

After a long break from Junior Hockey, Sexton found himself back in the Alberni Valley and started coaching in 1997. His first team, the AVMHA Pee-Wee Reps, Sexton coached players such as Josh Bonar, Devon Timberlake, Kelly Reynolds, Tyler Ruel and his younger brother Ryan Sexton. This team ended up winning the Vancouver Island Championship and placed 2^nd at the Provincials.

After many years as a player, coach and power skate instructor, Sexton decided that he needed to “Improve the development of coaches within our community and ensure first time players develop basic hockey skills”. He started coaching ‘AVMHA Initiation Program’ 7 years ago; with the help from ‘Hockey Canada’s Initiation Program’ guidelines .This program proved to be very successful with the players and coaches and continues today.

This is his first year coaching the PeeWee Reps after 2 years of coaching the Atom (Rep) Development Team.

ROB GAUDREAULT

Coach - Alberni Valley Bantam Bulldogs

This is Gaudreault’s 15^th year coaching in the Alberni Valley. Born and raised here, Gaudreault played (mainly in the competitive program) minor hockey for 9 years. He moved on to play Junior A for 3 years (tier 2) for the Merritt Centennials, Salmon Arm Totems (now known as the Silver Tips) and the Juan de Fuca Whalers (now known as the Grizzlies). As a rugged right winger he went onto play NCHL and for the PA Old Puckers travelling up and down the Island during the winter months.

Gaudreault’s first coaching experience came in 1995 when he had the opportunity to coach the Bandits with Mike Mowatt. He has coached Rep and Recreation within AVMHA since 2000 from Mites all the way up till now in Bantam.

KEVIN SOMERVILLE

Coach - Alberni Valley Midget A Bulldogs

Somerville has been coaching minor hockey in various communities throughout Vancouver Island for the last 15 years. Born and raised in Duncan, B.C, Somerville played in the Cowichan Valley Minor Hockey Association from the age of 7 until he graduated from High School. After graduation Somerville found himself helping out different hockey schools several consecutive summers in a row.

He then spent four years at the University of British Columbia playing for the UBC Faculty Super League all the while earning a degree in Forestry. It was then back to the Island for Somerville, where he really started to tap into his coaching skills. He says that,” The game of hockey was something I always had a passion for from a very young age. Coaching is a way for me to stay involved with the game and a way in which I can remain directly involved with my own children and their friends in a mentoring role”.

This is Somerville’s third year coaching a Bulldog (Rep) team.

BRENT DEMERAIS

Coach - Alberni Valley Midget A Bulldogs

This is Demerais’ 6th consecutive year coaching for AVMHA. Born and raised in the Alberni Valley, he first hit the ice at the tender age of 1 year. A few years later he was playing hockey within AVMHA as a centre, eventually moving up to play in the competitive program.

Demerais moved on playing Junior B Timbermen and from there, drafted up to Junior A and played with the Merritt Centennials ‘83/’84 season. To date, he holds an impressive 25 year team scoring record (2^nd that season only to Brett Hull) of 66 goals, 58 assists, 124 points and 189 penalty minutes! Demerais went on to WIHL playing for the Cranbrook Royals and after his last year in ’88 decided to try his hand at coaching.

He spent 5 years coaching in Cranbrook, 1 year in Victoria and then made his way back home to the Alberni Valley. In the 2008-09 season, coaching the Bantam Timbermen took on another success with his team winning the Vancouver Island Championship banner, which hasn’t been done in the Alberni Valley since 1988! Demerais looks forward to coaching this year’s Midget team, as he loves being around hockey and the hard working players.

MIKE DOUCETTE

Coach - Alberni Valley Atom Bulldogs

Mike Doucette has been coaching within AVMHA on and off for the past 12 years. Born and raised in the Alberni Valley, he first took to the ice as a figure skater until the age of 7. This skill in skating led him to hockey and he started his first season playing competitive until the age of 13.

Mike then moved to Kamloops for a short 3 years playing in the Recreational Divisions. Moving back to the Valley in 1984, he tried out and made the Midget Rep Timbermen 1984/1985 season. Following that season, he was invited to training camp in Canmore, Alberta and made the team. Doucette broke his leg in the first and only game he played for the ‘Canmore Junior Broncs’. This unfortunate accident took him out of hockey for one long year and although his leg has never been the same prior to the injury, Doucette never packed up his gear for long. He went back on the ice after that year of rehabilitation, and hasn’t looked back (He still plays today in the AV Men’s League).

Doucette’s interests in coaching sparked when his son started playing hockey 12 years ago. He first started coaching with Barry Johnston as an assistant and then over 5 years, gradually moved to the higher divisions helping out his son’s teams. In 2003 he decided to assistant coach in the (first year) Mites Division with head coach Dan Sexton.

That same year, local coach Mark Addy introduced AVMHA to the ‘Hockey Canada Initiation Program’, which is used by minor hockey associations across Canada. (The Initiation Program was developed by ‘leading hockey people across Canada’ after the Nagano Olympics and focuses on ‘making children’s first contact with hockey a safe and enjoyable experience’). Doucette jumped at the chance to be involved with this program as it not only teaches the kids the positive basics to hockey (fun, respect and sportsmanship) Doucette was also learning new skills as a coach. He says, “The goals that I’ve set as a coach isn’t to win every game; it’s not all about hockey. It’s about teamwork and teaching the players life skills on and off the ice”.

In the 2008-09 season, Doucette was passed the torch of ‘Initiation Program Coordinator’ from past coordinator and mentor Dan Sexton. Doucette was once assistant coach under Sexton when he began with Mites and says, “Dan has been a great mentor to me and took me under his wing and helped me go on to head coach 5 years ago.

Doucette has coached Novice (MacDermott’s Flames), assistant coach with the Atom Rep Bulldogs, Instructor of ‘CanSkate’ (Arrowsmith Skating Club) and ‘CanPower’ with Power Skating head instructor Jan Norman. Doucette has also taught new coaches of Mites and Novice (age group 4-8) using the tools set out by Hockey Canada, focusing on skill development. The abundance of coaches in these 2 divisions is “particularly keen to learn, take clinics and extra courses to thrive as productive coaches”.

2008-09 season was the introduction of the Tim Horton’s ‘Timbits Hockey’ program to AVMHA. According to Doucette, “The Timbits Hockey program is long overdue in our community and a fantastic program. I like the fact that they sponsor many different sport programs for kids; not just hockey. Tim Horton’s not only is the sponsor for the Mites Division, but they also contribute approximately 50 new jerseys this year, provide coaching gear, and provide the kids with water bottles, medals, you name it. If we choose to host a tournament, Tim Horton’s provides it all! Local owner of Tim Horton’s, Stefanie Weber, was behind getting all of this off the ground this year; a huge thank you for getting it started!”

A 2007-08 ‘Recreation Coach of the Year’ award recipient continues to coach, Doucette laments, “I love the game and teaching kids to play a game that we all love. I’m merely giving back to the game that gave me so much. I wouldn’t be the coach I am today if it wasn’t for Dan Sexton”.