Kam River coaching change


By
November 5, 2022

Head coach Matt Valley and the Kam River Fighting Walleye of the Superior International Jr. Hockey League have parted ways as the team seeks a full time coach. The 32-year old Valley is a full time teacher in the Thunder Bay area and he and his wife recently welcomed their second child.

“It was a tough decision for our organization but we believed we had to make a decision on bringing in a full time coach,” said Fighting Walleye general manager Kevin McCallum, in reference to moving on from Valley. “We couldn’t be more proud of what Matt brought to our organization both on and off the ice. His accomplishments will always be celebrated with our organization.”

Under Valley, Kam River finished in first place in the SIJHL in 2021-2022 with a record of 35-7-2. The Fighting Walleye then ousted its cross-town rival Thunder Bay North Stars in the semi-finals of the playoffs before losing to the Red Lake Miners in the league championship series.

Kam River is currently in first place in the seven-team SIJHL with a record of 11-4-1.

McCallum and hockey operations advisor Vern Ray will handle the Kam River bench until a full-time coach is hired. One intriguing and potential candidate to take over as the bench boss in Kam River is Geoff Walker, who coached Red Lake to the 2022 SIJHL championship. The 34-year old Walker is currently coaching in Sweden but he has family in Canada that includes his young daughter.


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