U17 AAA

Trevor Sprague will oversee both the Integrated and Female AAA programs in Northern B.C. Sprague has been involved in hockey in the north for over 30 years and has spent the last 17 years with teams in the BCEHL. He is entering his 11th season as the general manager of the Cariboo Cougars and seventh as the general manager of the Northern Capitals. Sprague coached in Prince George for over 20 years before moving to the management side of the game.  

During his coaching and management career, Sprague has won two provincial titles with the Cariboo Cougars’ U18 AAA team. Sprague is also a key driver behind the annual BC Hockey Winter Classic event that is held in Northern B.C. each winter.

Brogan O’Brien enters his first season as head coach of the U17 Cariboo Cougars and his second season in the BCEHL after serving as an assistant coach with the team during the 2025-26 season. The Prince George, B.C., native played minor hockey with Prince George Minor Hockey Association and suited up for the U18 Cariboo Cougars before advancing to the Prince George Spruce Kings of the British Columbia Hockey League and then, ultimately, to the Prince George Cougars of the Western Hockey League.

O’Brien played U Sports hockey at Carleton University for five seasons before beginning his professional career, which included time with the Fort Wayne Komets and Kansas City Mavericks of the ECHL and the Dundee Stars of the Elite Ice Hockey League. He holds a bachelor’s degree in financial economics from Carleton and a master of science in management from the University of Dundee. O’Brien works as a client adviser with RBC.

Riley Emmerson is entering his fourth season with the Fraser Valley Thunderbirds and seventh in the BCEHL. He is entering his first season as Manager, Hockey, overseeing the U18 AAA, U17 AAA and U15 AAA programs, while also serving as head coach of the U15 AAA Thunderbirds. Emmerson previously served as head coach of the U18 AAA Thunderbirds and spent three seasons with the Valley West Giants.

Emmerson began his coaching career as a player-coach with the Edinburgh Capitals of the Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL) in the U.K. during the final season of his playing career. Before transitioning to coaching, he enjoyed a 10-year professional playing career. In 2005, he was selected by the Minnesota Wild in the NHL Draft and went on to play in the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL), American Hockey League (AHL), Central Hockey League (CHL) and EIHL.

Leichel Duerksen enters her first season as manager of operations with the Fraser Valley Thunderbirds and her first season in the BCEHL. Duerksen has been involved in minor hockey for 10 years, beginning as a volunteer in 2016 before becoming a team manager in 2018. She joined the Abbotsford Minor Hockey Association board in 2020 and has since held roles as U15 director, U18 director, second vice-president, U7 co-ordinator and U9 director.

Duerksen helped introduce the Buddy Check for Jesse program to the association and organized its first Every Child Matters Orange Jersey Hockey Game. She holds an honours diploma in community support work and social services and works as an education assistant program co-ordinator at Vancouver Career College. Duerksen is passionate about inclusion, mental health awareness and creating positive environments that support the development and well-being of athletes.

Chris Helm enters his first season as head coach of the U17 Fraser Valley Thunderbirds and his fifth season in the BCEHL. Helm spent the previous two seasons as an assistant coach with the U17 Thunderbirds after serving two seasons as an assistant coach with the program’s U15 team. He has also coached at several levels with Mission Minor Hockey Association and has served as the association’s vice-president of rep hockey since 2022.

The New Westminster, B.C., native played junior hockey with the Abbotsford Pilots of the Pacific International Junior Hockey League and senior AA hockey with the Powell River Regals. Helm is a Red Seal plumber and Red Seal refrigeration mechanic and works as an industrial refrigeration mechanic.

Shawn McQuistin embarks on his second season as general manager for the Greater Vancouver Canadians. McQuistin was previously with Richmond Jets Minor Hockey Association (MHA), from 2013-2022 where he served in head coach, assistant coach and skill development coach roles at the U11 and U15 levels. Since 2022, McQuistin has held the position of head coach with the Vancouver Thunderbirds MHA's U11 A1 squad.

The Richmond native is a full-time employee for the City of Richmond's Water Department.

Jim Strang enters his first season as head coach of the U17 Greater Vancouver Canadians and his first season in the BCEHL. Strang has been involved in minor hockey for 40 years and served as director of hockey operations with Vancouver Thunderbird Minor Hockey Association from 2006 to 2017. His coaching experience includes recent head coaching roles at the U11 and U18 levels with Cloverdale Minor Hockey Association and at the U13 and U18 levels with Ridge Meadows Minor Hockey Association.

Originally from Cardston, Alta., Strang played junior A and junior B hockey in Alberta during the 1980s. He earned an associate of arts diploma from Simon Fraser University and works as a hockey instructor. Strang is committed to developing players on and off the ice.

Steve Smith is entering his fifth season as a general manager in the BCEHL. Smith currently serves as the Director of Hockey Operations of Okanagan Mainline Amateur Hockey Association. Prior to this, he was the executive director of Kelowna Minor Hockey Association from 2017-2025, division director from 2010-2017, and a coach in the association from 2008-2017. 

The Kelowna native has compiled over 20 years of experience working in minor hockey in Kelowna.

The 2026-27 season marks Nikita Poliakov’s second with the BCEHL as he returns the Okanagan Rockets’ bench staff as head coach of the U17 team. 

Prior to joining the Rockets, he served as the head coach of Kelowna Minor Hockey Association’s U18 Tier 2 squad during the 2024-25 season. Prior to that, the Chelyabinsk, Russia, product was the head coach of the Aurora Tigers of the Ontario Junior Hockey League during the 2016-17 season, and was an assistant coach with Okanagan Mainline Amateur Hockey Association’s Central Zone Rockets’ U15 Tier 1 squad during the 2021-22 season.

Poliakov’s playing career includes four seasons in the OJHL between 2006-2010 with the North York Rangers, Upper Canada Hockey Club, and the Upper Canada Patriots, before finishing his junior career with the Thorold Blackhawks of the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League. He then played one season of professional hockey with the 1000 Islands Privateers of the Federal Hockey League in the 2010-11 season.

  

Troy Larsen assumes the role as general manager of the Thompson Blazers program for a third consecutive season. Larsen is an experienced member of the hockey community in Kamloops, having served as the Vice President of Kamloops Minor Hockey Association from 2011-2019, and the Director of Hockey Operations for the Kamloops Junior Blazers Development program from 2015-2021.

Originally from Fort St. John, Larsen attended University College of the Cariboo (now Thompson Rivers University) in Kamloops. Outside of hockey, Larsen works for Bell Canada.

Garth Gartner enters his first season as head coach of the U17 Thompson Blazers and brings 23 years of minor hockey experience to the role. Gartner coached Vernon Minor Hockey Association’s U18 AAA team from 2003 to 2006 and held several roles with the association from 2011 to 2020. Most recently, he coached North Zone teams at the U15 AA and U18 AA levels from 2020 to 2026.

The Vernon, B.C., native played junior hockey with the Vernon Lakers and Vipers before attending Bemidji State University, where he played NCAA Division I hockey. His professional career included time with the Pensacola Ice Pilots of the ECHL and the Huntsville Channel Cats, Border City Bandits and Oklahoma City Blazers of the Central Hockey League. Gartner won a Canadian national championship with Vernon in 1995-96 and a CHL championship with Oklahoma City in 2001. He works as a construction manager.

Jamie Fiset is entering his ninth year as the general manager of the Valley West Giants and brings an additional nine years of working experience in minor hockey with him. He has previously been involved with BC Hockey's Program of Excellence, including a stint as the head coach of Team BC at the 2016 WHL Cup.  

Fiset was a board member with Langley Minor Hockey Association from 2010-2014. He completed his Bachelor of Arts degree and Bachelor's Degree in Education at the University of British Columbia before earning his Master of Arts degree at Royal Roads University. Away from the rink, Fiset is a teacher.

Alex Lucchesi enters his first season as head coach of the U17 Valley West Giants and his second season in the BCEHL. Lucchesi has been involved in minor hockey for 20 years and spent the 2025-26 season as an assistant coach with the U17 Giants. He previously served two seasons as an assistant coach with North Delta Minor Hockey Association’s U18 A1 team and one season as an assistant coach with Team BC’s U17 ball hockey team.

The North Delta, B.C., native played three seasons of junior hockey with the Delta Ice Hawks and helped the club win a Stonehouse Cup as Pacific Junior Hockey League champions. He has also represented Team Italy in men’s ball hockey and played for Team BC. Lucchesi is a certified ice facility operator and works in ice facility maintenance.

John Delli-Carri enters his third season in the BCEHL as general manager of the Vancouver Island Royals. He has been a team manager with Victoria Racquet Club for over seven seasons, and has been an executive member of the association for eight seasons. 

In addition to his involvement in minor hockey, Delli-Carri has previously coached young athletes in soccer and ball hockey. Delli-Carri resides in Victoria and is the Storm & Wastewater Manager with the Municipality of Saanich.

After spending the last 25 years coaching with Victoria Racquet Club, Juan de Fuca Minor Hockey Association and Saanich Minor Hockey Association, Jeff Kerr is entering his fifth season within the BCEHL, where he will take charge of the Vancouver Island Royals’ U17 AAA team. Originally from Gold River, Kerr was the Manager of BC Hockey’s Best Ever Program for three years and was involved in the program for nine years with both the U16 and U17 teams.

Kerr is a graduate of the University of Victoria where he received a Bachelor of Arts in Geography. Kerr’s playing career began as a member of Gold River Minor Hockey Association and features a Centennial Cup Championship as a member of the Notre Dame Hounds in 1987-88. That team was later inducted into the Saskatchewan Hockey Hall of Fame.

Greg Harding is entering his 10th season with the Vancouver North East Chiefs program and his eighth as the general manager of the program. The Surrey, B.C. native has been involved in minor hockey for 20 years, previously assuming roles with the Richmond Sockeyes of the Pacific Junior Hockey League (PJHL) and Langley Minor Hockey Association (MHA).  

Harding played his minor hockey at Burnaby Winter Club and Langley MHA before going on to play for the Delta Ice Hawks, Queens Park Pirates and Richmond Sockeyes of the PJHL. Harding also works full-time with Shadow Agency.

Ty Babych takes on the role of head coach of the U17 Vancouver North East Chiefs in his third season in the BCEHL. A coach in the minor hockey ranks for over 10 years, Babych has coached with various minor hockey associations, including most recently with Coquitlam MHA and Tri-Cities Female MHA.

Originally from North Vancouver, Babych played two seasons with the Squamish Wolf Pack of the Pacific Junior Hockey League. Outside of hockey, Babych works as a Building Manager, overseeing three buildings in the Vancouver area.

Steph Wagner enters her first season as general manager of the Vancouver North West Hawks and her second season in the BCEHL. Wagner has been involved in minor hockey for 35 years and has served as president of PCMHA since 2022 after working as a division manager in 2020.

Wagner has been an assistant coach with the Prospects Spring Program since 2025 and was an assistant coach with the Tri-City Predators U18 team during the 2025-26 season. The Surrey, B.C., native played minor hockey with Surrey Minor Hockey and Surrey Female Hockey. She studied marketing and communications at the British Columbia Institute of Technology and real estate trading at the UBC Sauder School of Business. Wagner works as director of operations for Fusion West Lacrosse.

Massimo Felicella enters his second season as head coach of the U17 Vancouver North West Hawks. Prior to assuming head coaching duties, he served as the team’s assistant coach during the 2024-25 season.  

Felicella has over 10 years of coaching experience at the minor hockey level. Most recently, he was the head coach of North Vancouver Minor Hockey Association’s (MHA) U18 Tier 1 team for the past three seasons. Prior to joining North Vancouver MHA, he was an assistant coach at the U15 and U18 levels with Kelowna MHA between 2015-2017. 

Felicella graduated from Capilano University in 2022.