The Prince George Spruce Kings resume their BC Hockey League schedule tonight in their first game since head coach Alex Evin was relieved of his duties on Monday.
Evin was fired 21 games into their 54-game season with the Spruce Kings (6-12-2-1) wallowing near the bottom of the BCHL standings.
Evin, 37, was in his sixth season as head coach since taking over from Adam Maglio in the season that followed their dominant run to the 2018-19 BCHL championship.
Associate coach Brad Tesink is now calling the shots as interim head coach and his first game in that capacity is tonight in Coquitlam, where the Spruce Kings take on the Express in the first of a two-game weekend roadtrip that also stops Saturday in Langley against the Rivermen.
Tesink and skills development coach Brandon Manning were busy this week practicing with the troops and preparing their weekend gameplan without Evin.
The shock of suddenly losing his coaching counterpart is still fresh in Tesink’s mind.
“Alex was the definition of what it means to be a Spruce King, he came to work every day well prepared and he’s taught me a lot, so to lose him at this point of the season is not easy,” said Tesink.
“Understandably, the team hasn’t performed to the level where we need them to and I think we’ll have to wear that a little bit. So now it’s time for a bit of a reset for us. Hopefully this sparks the guys in the dressing room and we can build some momentum for the second half of the year. We have to adjust now because the league’s not going to wait for us to figure things out.”
Tesink, 35, joined the Spruce Kings two months into the 2022-23 season and his contract as associate coach was renewed in May 2023.
Prior to coming to Prince George he had just started his second season as head coach of South Shore Lumberjacks. The Saint John, N.B. native also served on the New Brunswick coaching staff at the 2023 Canada Winter Games in Prince Edward Island.
He wants his team to be tight-checking and focus on team defence but also plans to encourage them to utilize their lamp-lighting skills.
“We have a group of players that want to play a fast, exciting style of game but we also have to lean back on the traditions of our town and be a hard-nosed blue-collar style team and play 200 feet and we’re going to bring the intensity every night,” Tesink said.
“Moving forward, you’re probably going to see more on the offensive side and hopefully we’ll be able to put games away early where we’ve allowed teams to hang around.”
Tesink won’t be alone behind the bench this weekend. Tyler Kuntz, who has coaching experience with the Powell River Kings, Langley Rivermen, Vancouver Giants, UBC Thunderbirds and St. George’s School, will help him plot strategies in the two games.
The Spruce Kings have shown they can compete with other teams in the league and they have shown signs of improvement over the past month. But they’ve had too many games that have slipped away on them and they were not rewarded with points in the standings.
They blew leads in three of their last four games and general manager Mike Hawes said something had to be done to try to shake them out of their funk.
Tesink got his hockey seasoning as a former Quebec Major Hockey League forward/defenceman who played four years in the league with the Gatineau Olympiques, Acadie-Bathurst Titan, and the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles. He finished his junior career close to his roots in New Brunswick, helping the Woodstock Slammers win the Maritime Junior Hockey League championship in 2010.
Spruce Kings GM Mike Hawes has not set any timeline as to who will be offered the head coaching role and won’t likely make that decision until after the season ends.
“It’s mid-season and most guys are working and it has to be the right fit for the organization,” said Hawes. “I know Brad is going to do a good job in the interim and it’s his team to run with now.”
Manning, a former NHL defenceman with Philadelphia, Chicago and Edmonton, will take on an increased role filling in for the team. Hawes said the players needed a change and that’s why he pulled the plug on Evin.
“If the group was not underachieving, they just weren’t good enough, it would be a different situation,” said Hawes. “But I think the group in better than our 6-12 record for sure, they’ve underachieved as a group and the kids are smart enough to realize that they admit they have.
“I’m never going to question their work ethic, everyone works hard and they know they’ve got to continue to do that and find a way to battle out of this. A huge responsibility for what happened on Monday falls on them and their underachieving and well work together to get out of it.”
Hawes says Evin will remain under contract to the Spruce Kings for several months and said the Castlegar native plans to go back to his hometown to be with his dad. Evin’s mother died two months ago of cancer and in the immediate future he plans to focus on his family.
“I have nothing but admiration for Alex and the job he did here,” said Hawes. “Every day I woke up knowing my head coach was doing all he could to make the team successful ad that’s always a good feeling.”
LOOSE PUCKS: Tonight’s game in Coquitlam will be forward Nicholas Papineau’s first BCHL game since joining the Spruce Kings from the Nepean (Ontario) Raiders on Monday… Michigan Tech recruit Skogan Schrott will represent the Spruce Kings at the 2025 BCHL All-Star Tournament and Skills Competition, Jan. 18 in Salmon Arm. The 19-year-old defenceman from Lithia Fla., is on a point-per-game pace with seven goals and 22 points in 21 games in his second BCHL season…. forward Brady McIsaac was chosen as the Cowichan Valley Capitals’ all-star representative in a poll of league coaches and general manager. The 19-year-old Prince George, who father Brent was a Spruce Kings defenceman from 2000-02, is also putting up a point per game with 10 goals and 12 assists in 22 games…. Former Spruce Kings forward Luca Primerano, who now skates for the Cowichan Valley Capitals, was also selected. The final three all-star spots will be chosen in a fan poll. Spruce Kings forward Ethan Montroy is one of the fan candidates.
