GPAC President Tyler Stojan (Left) and new Technical Director of GPAC Ryan Allen 

By Jeromy Corrigan

GPAC

GPAC announces new Technical Director, Strength & Conditioning Coach & Head Coaches for 19/20 season

Jul 4, 2019 | 1:29 PM

It was a big day for the Grande Peace Athletic Club Thursday as they announced their new Technical Director, Strength & Conditioning Coach, and their full Coaching line-up for the 2019-2020 season.

GPAC named Ryan Allen as Technical Director of the club moving forward and he comes to the organization with an impressive resume.

Allan has 16 years of Coaching experience, including stints as an Assistant Coach of the Fort McMurray Oil Barons and Drayton Valley Thunder.

“I think I’m just going to be another set of eyes,” stated Allen. “I’m another person to bounce ideas off of and help coaches coach. I think with my experience I can be that other set of eyes and then help out in any area I can.”

The process of hiring a Technical Director took some time for the organization, but is something which they felt was needed to continue the growth of the organization.

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“The game is evolving. The programs are evolving. The expectations of the ADM (Alberta Development Model) for elite hockey are changing immensely over the last few years and we need to evolve with it,” explained President Tyler Stojan.

Stojan added this is something which will help keep the program at the forefront moving forward and he believes Allen is the perfect person for the job.

“He has everything from Alberta Junior Hockey League experience, he has worked with Hockey Alberta for mentorship programs and facilitating development camps and skill camps along with being involved with academy programs in the city. He has seen both types of programs. He is the right fit for our program and brings a lot of knowledge and options for people. We’re excited to have him.”

During the press conference Thursday, Allen revealed all of the Head Coaches for GPAC for the 2019-2020 season. A full list is below:

• Major Midget AAA – Chris Schmidt
• Minor Midget AAA – Brett Stephenson
• Midget AA – Fraser Berg
• Bantam AAA – Mike Brown
• Bantam AA – Kyle Weegar
• Bantam AA – Jace Weegar

“There are a number of these coaches that are enrolled in high performance courses. The message from all of our coaches is they want to get better, they want to be better and they are ecstatic for the hiring of a Technical Director.”

Another exciting announcement which came out of the press conference was the addition of a team at the Minor Midget AAA level and another 15-year-old team to the program which will compete at the AA level.

The new 15-year-old team was just approved Wednesday night and GPAC is currently in the process of hiring a Head Coach for the team.

To help the program continue to grow and develop players moving forward, GPAC also revealed they have brought on Jordan McTaggart as their Strength & Conditioning Coach.

A former member of GPAC and the Grande Prairie Storm, McTaggart is excited to be back in his hometown helping out the hockey players of the future.

“Getting done school this last year it’s kind of awesome to have a job title with it and kind of lay a platform with that. I am super excited to come back to Grande Prairie and be able to work with the athletes and help them develop.”

McTaggart was also named the Strength and Conditioning coach of the Grande Prairie Storm in mid June. (link)

“Jordan eats, sleeps, breathes what he’s doing. Him being a GPAC alumni with the experience of playing here and having his own struggles throughout the years and being able to overcome them, it’s a great story,” says Stojan.

GPAC will begin try-outs for the 2019-2020 season at the end of August.

Bantam Fall Camp begins on August 23rd and Midget Fall Camp on August 26th.