Chill head coach Vaillancourt moves up to NAHL

May 23, 2019

The Coulee Region Chill of the NA3HL have announced that head coach Jon Vaillancourt has been named to new Associate Head Coach of the Minnesota Wilderness of the North American Hockey League (NAHL).

 

Vaillancourt is originally from La Valle, Wisconsin and has spent the last two seasons as the Head Coach and General Manager for the Coulee Region Chill in the NA3HL.

 

In Vaillancourt’s inaugural season with the Coulee Region Chill (then La Crosse Freeze), the team posted a record of 34-12-1, claiming the Central Division Championship Title, with six players moving on to the NAHL.

 

This past season, the Coulee Region Chill captured the regular season Central Divison Championship with a program record of 36-9-2. That also included 10 NCAA commitments from the 2018-19 team. 

 

Vaillancourt has also coached in both the 2018 and 2019 NA3HL Top Prospects Tournaments.

 

“We wanted to make sure we brought in a hard-working coach, with a proven record, that shows the tenacity to effectively help balance all the moving parts of a hockey team," said Wilderness Head Coach Boitz. “Jon is a terrific, upcoming coach and we have been incredibly impressed with his ability to break down and explain the game to his players. We are extremely fortunate to add his repertoire to our staff and are excited to get the season rolling.” 

 

Prior to coaching, Vaillancourt played four years at Framingham State University NCAA D3 and was as named one of the captains his senior year. After college, he joined the Elmira Jackals of the ECHL before transitioning into coaching. Prior to joining the Coulee Region Chill, Jon spent four years as an Assistant Coach with the Hampton Roads Whalers. During this time, Vaillancourt also served as a Strength and Conditioning Coach and Skills Development Coach in the ECHL with the Norfolk Admirals.