Female U18 AAA

Shannon Butler will make her debut as general manager with Fraser Valley Rush during the 2025-26 season. She has been with the Rush since 2016 in various positions including manager, assistant coach and safety person. Butler served as a manager and an assistant coach with the Trinity Western University Women's Hockey team (Senior Women's AA) between 2010-2020.

Butler attained a Bachelor's Degree in Human Kinetics from Trinity Western University and played for their women's hockey team (Senior Women's AA) from 2011-2016.

Jen Collins will step behind a BCEHL bench for the first time during the 2024-25 season as co-head coach of the Fraser Valley Rush. Collins has coached female hockey with Abbotsford Female HA and Chilliwack MHA for the past three seasons, and has been a member of the coaching staff at BC Hockey Program of Excellence Regional Camps in 2022 and 2023.

Collins grew up in Cavan, Ontario and played for Peterborough Girls Hockey Association. She is currently attending the University of Fraser Valley and is working towards a degree in Criminal Justice with a minor in Kinesiology. Away from the rink, Collins is a Court Liaison Officer with the RCMP and City of Chilliwack.

Jag Bal brings over 20 years of coaching experience to the Fraser Valley Rush in his first season as co-head coach. Bal’s coaching career began in 1995, and is highlighted by a BC Hockey Championship victory with Surrey Female MHA in 2017. He has also served as the Coach Coordinator with Surrey Female Hockey Association from 2012-2023.

Originally from Cloverdale, Bal works full-time in hockey as the Director of Scouting for the Seattle Thunderbirds of the Western Hockey League.

Shannon Morris-Reade begins her fourth season as general manager of the Greater Vancouver Comets. Prior to assuming the role, she spent three seasons behind the bench as an assistant coach for the Comets.

Morris-Reade, who calls Port Coquitlam home, earned her Bachelor of Science degree at Lindenwood University where she also played for the school’s Division 1 women’s hockey program. She works full-time as a cardiology technologist.

Melanie Jue will lead the bench staff for the Greater Vancouver Comets this season, which will be her third year in the BCEHL. Coaching has taken Jue around the world. She was an assistant coach with the Chinese Women’s National Team in 2022, an assistant coach with the Varsity Women’s hockey team at Lindenwood University (NCAA) from 2015 to 2018, and she spent three years at the Pursuit of Excellence (now RINK Hockey Academy) in Kelowna. 

The Richmond MHA graduate attended Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, where she received a Bachelor of Science in Applied Economics and Management. During her time there, she played for Cornell Women’s Hockey Team from 2006 to 2010 and was inducted into the Cornell University Athletics Hall of Fame in 2021. Jue also played professionally for Kunlun Red Star in the Zhenskaya Hockey League (Eurasia) from 2017 to 2021.  

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 10th season as the general manager of the Cariboo Cougars and sixth 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.

Hayden-James Berra steps into his first season as head coach with the Northern Capitals. Berra has previous coaching experience in the BCEHL, which includes three seasons as assistant coach with the Cariboo Cougars, Northern Capitals and Thompson Blazers programs from 2018-2022. 

Berra grew up and played his minor hockey in Prince George, and was a member of the BCEHL’s U18 Cariboo Cougars from 2010-2012. Berra capped off his playing career with three seasons of junior hockey split between B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Berra possesses a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Northern British Columbia, and a Juris Doctor from Thompson Rivers University. He was called to the BC Bar in 2023, and currently works as the Manager of Land Administration for the City of Prince George.

Kevin Bathurst enters his third year as general manager of the Thompson-Okanagan Lakers, bringing an extensive background in hockey with him. Through nearly 20 years of coaching, Bathurst has held positions with the University of Western Ontario Men’s Hockey team, the Calgary Canucks and Calgary Mustangs of the Alberta Junior Hockey League, RINK Hockey Academy of the Canadian Sport School Hockey League and most recently a pair of seasons behind the bench with the Okanagan Lakers of the British Columbia Intercollegiate Hockey League.

Bathurst obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Kinesiology with a specialization in coaching from the University of New Brunswick in 2004. He then attended the University of Western Ontario, where Bathurst graduated with a Master of Arts Degree in Kinesiology in 2006. Bathurst’s full-time occupation is with Greater Vernon Minor Hockey Association, where he serves as the executive director of hockey operations.

In his first season in the BCEHL, Peter Brindley steps into the role of head coach of the Thompson-Okanagan Lakers. Involved in coaching for five seasons, Brindley was the head coach of the league-winning OMAHA Central Zone Female U18 A team during the 2022-23 season, and the head coach of the U15 Central Zone U15 AA team during the 2023-24 season.

Originally from Ontario, Brindley is a graduate of Wilfrid Laurier University, with a Bachelors of Business Administration.

Danielle Sutherland takes on the role of general manager of the Vancouver Island Seals for the second consecutive season. Prior to becoming general manager, she was involved with the Seals as their travel coordinator during the 2023-24 season.

Sutherland attended Memorial University of Newfoundland, where she obtained a Bachelor's degree in Physical Education and a certificate in Criminology. Outside of hockey, Sutherland works for the Department of National Defense.

The 2024-25 season will mark the first in the BCEHL for Vancouver Island Seals’ Head Coach Danielle Hardy. Hardy is a part-owner of Full Force Hockey School, based on Vancouver Island. She was also part of the coaching staff at BC Hockey’s 2024 Female POE Regional Camp in Langley.

With an extensive playing background, Hardy suited up with the NCAA’s Providence College for three seasons between 2015-2018 and USports’ University of Alberta for two seasons between 2018-2020. Originally from Nanaimo, Hardy possesses a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Alberta, and is in the process of completing a three-year Somatic Experiencing Certification. She currently resides in Port Alberni and works as a Specialized Trauma Informed Behaviour Support Worker.