A former Dudley-Hewitt Cup Champion will man the Timmins Rock bench next season.

Ryan Woodward replaces Paul Gagne as Head Coach, and brings a wealth of experience as a coach and player.

Woodward was an NCAA Division III national champion with Oswego State University back in 2007, and won the Dudley-Hewitt Cup with the Wellington Dukes (OJHL) in 2003.

That year, the Dukes advanced to the final four of the RBC Cup.

“Over the past three weeks, G.M. Kevin Peever and our hockey operations board of directors have undertaken a thorough and comprehensive search for our next head coach. Following a detailed evaluation of all coaching candidates, there was overwhelming consensus that Ryan was our top candidate,” said Team President Ted Gooch.

“We wanted a great coach and this process yielded our top pick. I couldn’t be happier. On behalf of the entire Rock organization, the great city of Timmins and our fans, I want to welcome Ryan.”

For the past two seasons, Woodward was an associate coach and assistant general manager of the Dukes.

His other accolades include:

  • Former Head Coach and GM with Picton Pirates Junior ‘C’ Hockey Club (won a Schmalz Cup OHA Junior ‘C’ Title in 2013)
  • Graduate Assistant Coach with Oswego State University
  • 2006 NCAA All-American and State University of New York Athletic Conference Player of the Year
  • 2003 Ontario Hockey Association Junior ‘A’ Player of the Year

He was also part of the 1999 Picton Pirates team that won the Empire B League Championship, and was the league Rookie of the Year.

Woodward will be formally introduced to media and the public at a meet-and-greet at Boston Pizza on Thursday, May 4th at 5:30pm.

Filed under: Local News, nojhl, ryan-woodward, timmins-rock