The Bonnyville Junior A Pontiacs Hockey Organization is very proud and pleased to announce contract extensions to both Head Coach and General Manager Rick SWAN and Associate Coach and Assistant General Manager Larry DRAPER.
President Jim MARTINEAU says that “On behalf of the Bonnyville Jr. A PONTIACS Board of Directors it is with great pleasure that we sign Rick and Larry to long term deals to remain with the Bonnyville PONTIACS. We’ve achieved something special here and it is a ringing endorsement of their coaching and management abilities. They have certainly taken this club, from a playing point of view, to another level. Rick and Larry are extremely valuable individuals to the Bonnyville PONTIAC Organization and are considered as the best in the business. Rick and Larry make decisions based on what it best for the organization and the team. These are high integrity individuals who say what they mean and do what they say.”
“I am honored and humbled to continue as the Bonnyville PONTIACS Head Coach and General Manager for years to come. The PONTIACS Organization represents so many of the values that I embrace as a coach; the commitment to the team above oneself, the dedicated pursuit of excellence, the commitment to organizational culture, the identity they have established and the fact that the PONTIACS and the community are so much a part of each other. To have the ability to work with such a strong character group of Board members and with Larry, Kim and Tara is outstanding. With a long term deal it sends a message that we are ‘all in.’ It is great for our program and for our recruiting. As always the focus of our program will be to be involved in the community more than any other franchise in Junior hockey, move players on to the next level and strive to add a championship. The current state of the Bonnyville PONTIACS is strong and I envision it only to get stronger,” says Rick SWAN.
“I am honored to sign up with a first class organization in the Bonnyville PONTIACS for a long term deal, said Larry DRAPER. The support the people and the business community in Bonnyville give towards the PONTIAC Organization is incredible. To work with Head Coach and G.M. Rick SWAN and help him integrate the on and off-ice philosophy that he has in place into the PONTIACS Culture has and will be satisfying. I am very excited to be a part of the growth of an organization that’s vision is to be the best Junior A program to play for in Canada.”