The Kirkland Lake GoldMiners of the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League (NOJHL) have hired Kyle Smart as Interim Head Coach and General Manager. Kyle is returning to Kirkland Lake, as his last visit was as an assistant coach for the Trenton Golden Hawks of the OJHL when they captured the Dudley Hewitt Cup in 2016 in Kirkland Lake, which was followed up by a second Dudley Hewitt Cup Championship in 2017, which they captured as the host team.
Additional coaching experience that he brings to the GoldMiners includes guiding the York Simcoe Express to an AAA All Ontario Midget final, Victoria Kings BC Bantam and Midget Island championships, and provincial finalists, as well as Coach of the Year awards in back to back seasons with the Victoria Kings (VRC).
“We had many qualified candidates apply for the position, however at this point in the season, we feel that Kyle with his extensive contacts throughout the OJHL , as well as other provincial junior leagues in Ontario , is best suited to lead our program at the current time,“ says Derek Callahan, Vice President of Hockey Operations.
“Kyle will add structure, accountability, and perhaps best of all , a dedication to systems for all of our players” added Callahan. They will have the opportunity to learn and develop from a trio of experienced coaches on the bench. The teams success in Trenton with the Golden Hawks for numerous years, was based on their ability to recruit great players, a use of a variety of systems in all zones, and the dedication to daily video analysis, pre game video and text preparation. Their analytics were very in depth, and they were able to hold players accountable, while learning how to be a better hockey player.
