Powell River, BC– August 22, 2012 – It has been a summer with some changes for the Powell River Kings' staff. Derek Bachynski arrived in town yesterday as the Kings' new Assistant Coach and the final missing piece to the staff for the upcoming 2012-2013 season.
Derek was born and raised in Windsor, Ontario and comes to the Kings with a resume full of experience both as a coach and as a player. He played NCAA Division 1 hockey for Wayne State University from 2004-2008 where he also earned his Bachelor of Business Administration. After completing his undergrad, he moved to Europe to play hockey in the Holland Premiere Division for the Groningen Grizzlies for a year.
After the stint playing hockey overseas, Derek returned home and started his coaching career with the Leamington Junior ‘B’ Flyers. From there, he continued to develop his coaching skills as an Assistant Coach and the Director of Ohio University’s ‘Learn to Play’ program. He then came back to Ontario where he was an Assistant Coach for the Sun County Panthers Bantam AAA and then worked for the University of Windsor’s Lancers men’s hockey program. His years of experience provide him with a strong foundation with a skill set that will easily translate into the role of Assistant Coach for the Kings.
Derek looks forward to living and working on the Sunshine Coast. “BC has always been somewhere where I wanted to live and work. It’s a privilege to be here.”
“During my time of searching for coaching positions the BCHL was always the league that I was attracted to and specifically Powell River with their track record with success. I reached out to Kent and he was one of the few coaches in the BCHL with advice about coaching, which direction I should go in and to keep in touch should anything change. It right away felt like a good fit.”
Coach Bachynski is focused and knows what he wants to bring to the team. Saying, “Part of my philosophy is hard work and team work. I wanted to develop these players not only on the ice but off the ice as character and focus is extremely important.”
Kings' Head Coach and General Manager Kent Lewis is pleased to have Bachynski on the staff team saying, “Derek comes in fresh with a great playing background and experience. He sought us out and we were fortunate enough to know people that knew him well and who said positive things about him. Derek will be a key part to the staff team and the development of our program. He’s done a lot of great things in hockey and I’m sure we’ll continue to see that develop here in Powell River.”
Former Assistant Coach Geoff Grimwood has moved on to the Western Hockey League’s Victoria Royals where he will be working as an Assistant Coach as well as the Head Coach for the Major Midgets.
GM and Coach Lewis reflects on Geoff’s contributions to the Kings’ program, “Geoff had a long history with the Kings first as a player trying out, then as a Junior ‘B’ coach whom we worked closely with, and then as a successful assistant coach here with the team. He brought a lot to the table over the past two years and contributed to the success of our program. I know that he will continue to find success in his coaching career.”
The Kings thank Geoff for all he did for the Kings’ program and wish him all the best in his new role and much success in his coaching pursuits.
