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Okanagan Rockets Staff
Rob comes to the Rockets after 5 years with the Valley West Hawks as a Head Coach and GM. His first year as GM of the OKR will also see him taking over the Okanagan Zone Lead - Operations & Player Development in which he is directly overseeing 11 teams in the Okanagan.
Rob brings 20 years of coaching experience with 14 years at the Bantam and Midget AAA level, 5 between University and Jr A in Alberta.
Rob also bring 5 years of scouting experience in the WHL and has been the lead evaluator for 2 yrs in the U16 Team BC Program of Excellence.
Jason, a native of Fort Macleod, AB, is in his second year with the Okanagan Rockets Organization having served as an Associate Coach with the Minor Midget Team that won the BCMML League Championship last year. Jason spent the previous 4 years coaching at the Pursuit of Excellence Hockey Academy and in 2017 lead the Midget Varsity team to a CSSHL League championship.
A former defense man, Jason played in the WHL for the Seattle Thunderbirds and was awarded the Scholastic Player of the Year in his rookie season and the team’s Best Defense Man in his final season with the T-Birds. A 2nd round draft pick of the Philadelphia Flyers in 1998, Jason continued his professional career playing for affiliated AHL and ECHL teams of the Philadelphia Flyers, Nashville Predators and Minnesota Wild before heading to play in several European countries until his retirement in 2013 after having won all three league titles in the EIHL with the Nottingham Panthers.
Jason operates Perfect Skating Kelowna, that provides hockey development programming focused on improving a hockey player’s on-ice movements and skills. Jason attended the Hockey Canada Skills Coaching Instructor Seminar in 2018. Jason has travelled both nationally and internationally as a volunteer on-ice instructor with Hockey Ministries International that host camps in seven different countries.
Jason has a passion to help players realize their athletic and personal potential while contributing to the success of the team.
Assistant Coach - Max Mowatt
Max, a former defenceman, played two seasons with the Okanagan Rockets Major Midget Team and during his time as a Rocket, Max received the Rookie of the Year Award, Team MVP Award and was selected as a First Team All-Star for the League.
Max went on to play in the BCHL with the Vernon Vipers from 2010 to 2012, winning the Fred Page Cup, Doyle Cup and in 2011 played in the finals of the Royal Bank Cup. He finished his junior career playing for the Okotoks Oilers in the AJHL from 2012-2014 and was the recipient of the Unsung Hero Award. After his junior career, Max utilizing a WHL scholarship from the Kamloops Blazers went on to play for the University of Calgary Dinos in the 2016-17 season.
Max resides in Vernon, continuing to share a passion for the game by helping the student athletes enrolled at the, On The Edge Premier Hockey Academy, a family owned business. A versatile instructor, Max works with young athletes during both on and off ice session aimed at developing a player’s individual skills and fitness elements to achieve their goals.
This will be Max’s first year as an assistant coach with the OKR organization and is grateful for the opportunity to work with the all players on the Major Bantam team this year.
Trainer - Addie Mercuri
Addie was raised in the small town of McBride, British Columbia, and moved to the Okanagan to pursue her passion in Kinesiology at the University of British Columbia. Within her program, Addie was a trainer at the clinic in the University, and worked under athletic therapists to treat athletes on a variety of injuries while learning the approaches to proper assessment, management and care. Now graduated with a Bachelors degree in Human Kinetics with a concentration in Clinical Exercise Physiology,
Addie has now joined the Okanagan Rockets Major Bantam Team as the trainer for this year as her first endeavour into the field of sport and fitness. With little experience of playing hockey in the past, Addie is excited to learn about the dynamics of the sport from the staff and players, expand her knowledge of diagnosing and treating injuries, and educate youth about fitness and the importance of proper prevention and management of injuries for prolonged health and longevity of sport.