The Vancouver Giants have announced a new GM and new head coach, with Hnat Domnichelli taking on the general manager's role and Parker Burgess leading the bench.
Domenichelli is a Swiss-Canadian dual citizen who served as GM of HC Lugano in the Swiss Professional Men's League for six seasons, and was assistant GM of Team Canada at the Spengler Cup in 2023 and 2024. Before he moved to the management side, he played in the WHL with the Kamloops Blazers, winning back-to-back league titles and Memorial Cups in 1994 and 1995. He was also on Canada's gold medal-winning team at the 1996 World Juniors.
He was then drafted by the Hardford Whalers, playing 263 career NHL games with the Whalers, Calgary Flames, Atlanta Thrashers, and Minnesota Wild. He played overseas for 11 seasons in the Swiss league, from 2003 to 2014.
鈥淗nat is a very well-respected and well-connected individual in the hockey world who brings significant management experience to the role,鈥� Giants president and majority owner Ron Toigo said in the announcement. 鈥淗e presented a clear vision and path for our hockey club, and we're excited to see him lead our hockey operations."
Burgess coached the Muskegon Lumberjacks of the United States Hockey League to their first-ever Clark Cup win last season.
He spent two and a half years as head coach of the Lumberjacks, and before that was head coach and assistant GM of the Janesville Jets in the North American Hockey League, taking them to a first-place finish with a 31-13-4 record in the 2020/21 season. He also coached at the college level in the U.S.
鈥淧arker is a rising star, and we're thrilled to have him lead our coaching staff,鈥� Toigo said. 鈥淗is track record of not only winning, but developing young players on and off the ice made him a perfect fit. Throughout the interview process, we were extremely impressed with his communication style, his knowledge and his passion for coaching."
The Giants play out of the 黑马磁力 Events Centre.
