NORTHERN ONTARIO JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE
NOJHL NETWORK MEDIA UPDATE
Release Date: Thursday, Aug. 27, 2015
Gold Miners Lafleur named to Canada East coaching staff
SUDBURY – The Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL), in partnership with Hockey Canada, announced Thursday that Kirkland Lake Gold Miners head coach and general manager Marc Lafleur has been named an assistant coach for Canada East for the upcoming 2015 World Junior A Challenge, which is slated to run Dec. 13-19 in Cobourg and Whitby, Ont.
This marks the third straight year Lafleur has been named to the Canada East coaching staff having served as an assistant in both 2013 and 2014.
Named NOJHL coach of the year in his first season in Kirkland Lake in 2012-13, he led the Gold Miners to the NOJHL championship and a berth in the Dudley-Hewitt Cup two years ago.
Lafleur previously worked as an assistant coach with the QMJHL’s Rouyn-Noranda Huskies and in the NCAA with Bemidji State University.
As a player, Lafleur spent two seasons with the USHL’s Thunder Bay Flyers, including winning the Dudley-Hewitt Cup in 1995 and advancing to the Centennial Cup, now RBC Cup, Canadian Jr. A Championship before heading to Bemidji St. on scholarship.
Serving as head coach of Canada East will Jason Clarke of the Carleton Place Canadians where he serves as bench boss and GM of the two-time Central Canadian Hockey League champs.
Rounding out the coaching staff as assistant are Curtis Hodgins (head coach, Cobourg Cougars, OJHL) and Stephane Blanchet (goalie and video coach, Collège Français de Longueuil, QJHL).
Canada East has appeared in four of the nine gold medal games at the World Junior A Challenge, winning silver in 2006 (Yorkton/Humboldt, Sask.), 2007 (Trail/Nelson, B.C.), 2010 (Penticton, B.C.), and 2011 (Langley, B.C.), and bronze in 2008 (Camrose, Alta.). Canada East finished fourth in 2009 (Summerside, P.E.I.) and 2012 (Yarmouth, N.S.) and 2014 (Kindersely, SK) and was sixth in 2013 (Yarmouth, N.S.)
For more information on the 2015 World Junior A Challenge, please visit www.hockeycanada.ca/wjac, or follow along through social media at www.facebook.com/wjrac and www.twitter.com/hc_wjac.
