The head knight in the Prince George Spruce Kings’ icy realm is staying a few more years.
Today (Feb. 3), Alex Evin put pen to parchment on a two-year contract extension with the BCHL club, who’s still waiting on any possibility of playing a 2020-21 season amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Evin became the bench boss prior to the start of 2019-20 after Fred Page and Doyle Cup-winning coach Adam Maglio took a job with the WHL’s Spokane Chiefs.
“Prince George is an excellent hockey community, and I am fortunate to be a part of that,” said Evin in a statement.
“We have a great group of talented young players and I look forward to working with them and pushing the growth and development of our team on a day-to-day basis.”
The 33-year-old’s new contract sees him in red, white and blue through until the end of the 2022-23 campaign.
Spruce Kings General Manager Mike Hawes says he’s been impressed with Evin’s progressive style and overall work ethic since joining the franchise in 2017.
“His ability to teach and relate to today’s players along with his attention to detail is excellent,” he noted.
“Most importantly, he is a great person who truly cares about the players, his peers, and the organization. He has persevered through this very difficult season and deserves this opportunity to move forward with our organization into the future and hopefully to a more normal hockey landscape.”
As a result of Evin’s new tenure, the team has also offered one-year contract extensions to his support staff in hockey operations.
This includes Associate Coach Lukáš Lomicky, Assistant Coach Jason Garneau and Trainer Joel Walkey.
“Even with the challenges we faced this past year, working with Alex and the Spruce Kings has been a privilege,” said Lomicky, who came to Prince George after coaching the Revelstoke Grizzlies to a 2018-19 regional junior ‘B’ championship and worked with his home country, the Czech Republic, to a bronze medal at the 2019 World Under-17 Challenge.
“I am thankful to Mike for the opportunity to work with this organization and our players for another season.”
Garneau was brought back to the Spruce Kings after a four-season hiatus, during which he coached the North Central Under-18 AA Bobcats to its first divisional title.
Walkey, a product of Prince George, came to the Kings’ castle after graduating from Camosun College's Athletic Therapy program and two seasons on Vancouver Island with Saanich’s junior’ B’ club.
The Spruce Kings finished its extended training season 4-2-0-1 before B.C. COVID-19 public health orders banned travel for sports teams, which are still in effect until Friday (Feb. 5).
The province will detail the next steps that day, which could see certain restrictions either lifted, extended, tightened or loosened.
