CALGARY, AB (May 23, 2016) – Portage Terriers Head Coach and General Manager Blake Spiller of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL) is the 2015-2016 Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL) Coach of the Year.
This is the second year in row the Terrier Coach has won this honour. He guided the Terriers to a 52 – 6 – 2 record for 106 points during the regular season. His Portage Terriers finished ranked No. 1 in the CJHL and won the Turnbull Cup for a second time in as many years with 12 wins and only 1 loss on the march the MJHL championship.
Blake Spiller who took over as head coach of Portage in 2006 has been re-writing the record books ever since. No Terrier coach has won as many regular season games, playoff games or championships as Spiller. Over the last two seasons, his Portage Terriers have lost only nine games in regulation time.
A Portage la Prairie native, Blake first made a name for himself with the Terriers as a player in the early 80’s. Spiller played several seasons for the club, his final as team captain. He returned to the Terrier fold in 2001 as an assistant coach where he spent five years in that role. He got his chance in 2006 when he assumed the head coach’s role and the team has seen unprecedented success ever since.
The local product has led the Terriers to Turnbull Cup victories in 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015 and 2016.
Congratulations to the other Finalists for the 2016 CJHL Coach of the Year Award:
Fred Harbinson – BCHL
Rick Swan – AJHL
Pierre Pétroni – QJHL
Kevin Hasselberg – SJHL
Dustin Treylen – CCHL
