Nelson hires Chris Shaw

The KIJHL's Nelson Leafs have hired a new Coach and GM. I received the following press release from the club today:

"The Nelson Leafs Hockey Society is pleased to announce that Chris Shaw of Penticton BC has accepted the position of Head Coach and General Manager of the Nelson Leafs Hockey Club.

Chris brings experience as a player, coach and a scout within the KIJHL, BCHL and other junior leagues across North America. His strengths include player recruitment, player development and community liaison.

Within the next few weeks Chris will begin transition from his current duties with the Okanagan Hockey School and the Penticton Lakers Hockey Club to his new assignment with the Nelson Leafs.

Congratulations Chris and welcome to Nelson."

Shaw is a former Assistant Coach with the Alberni Valley Bulldogs of the BCHL and the Penticton Lakers of the KIJHL. Both those teams are owned and operated by the Okanagan Hockey Academy.

You can read some more on Chris by clicking here for the announcement of his hiring with the Lakers last year. I have yet to talk with anyone from Nelson about the hiring or to Shaw himself, but I'll have more on this hire tonight on Mountain FM's Overtime.

EDIT: I found out from talking to Chris that he's a former Smoke Eater. He had a brief stint in Trail as a 15 year old back in 1996. I'll have that interview on Overtime tomorrow. You can also check out the Nelson Daily News article on the hiring by clicking here and an article on Shaw when he was with the Bulldogs here.