The Moose Jaw Warriors will have a new face behind the bench when the 2020-21 Western Hockey League season kicks off this September.
The team announced Tuesday morning that Gordon Burnett has been hired as the team’s new assistant coach, joining head coach Mark O’Leary and assistant coach Scott King on the Tribe staff.
The 39-year-old Regina product is well-travelled through his hockey career and brings plenty of experience to the position, having played seven seasons in the ECHL and Central Hockey League before moving on to the coaching ranks in the 2012-13 season.
“We are very pleased to add Gord Burnett to our coaching staff as a full-time assistant coach,” said Warriors general manager Alan Millar. “Gord brings very good experience to our team from his time in Kootenay, this past season as a head coach in the MJHL, and his playing experience as a defenceman.”
“I feel very confident that this coaching staff led by head coach Mark O’Leary, with assistants Scott King and Gord, will build strong relationships with our players and will have a good development model to make them better players and better people,” Millar added.
Burnett has spent plenty of time behind the bench as an assistant coach throughout his career.
Beginning with the Arizona Sundogs of the CHL from 2012-2014, Burnett joined the University of Notre Dame as an assistant for the 2014-15 season before moving on to the Kootenay Ice for four seasons from 2015-16 to 2018-19.
It was during his time in Kootenay that the Saskatchewan Hockey Association and Hockey Canada started to come calling, first when he was named an assistant for the 2016 Western Canada Challenge Cup, coaching the likes of Kaeden Korczak and Connor Zary and facing future Warriors standout Brayden Tracey.
Burnett was back for Team Sask’s entry into the WHL Cup the following season and then served as the head coach for Saskatchewan at the 2019 Canada Winter Games, where his charges reached the medal round before falling in the bronze medal game.
Most recently, Burnett served as the head coach for the Winnipeg Blues this past season, leading the squad to a 24-29-6-1 record and a playoff spot before the COVID-19 pandemic brought the season to an end. He also coached one of the MJHL entries in the 2020 MJHL/SJHL Showcase.
“Gord brings high energy and passion for the game, he’s a great communicator with experience developing players in our league,” said O’Leary. “Scott and I are excited to work with Gord to create an environment for the team and the players to take a big step this season.”
