Under the new direction of Lloydminster Bobcat’s Head Coach and General Manager Nigel Dube, the organization has immediately put in place two key pieces to help build the foundation for a winning culture moving forward.
The Bobcats are pleased to announce the hiring of Andrew Gilbert as the team’s new Director of Player Personal, as well as Cory Lonke as the Director of U.S. Scouting.
Gilbert comes to the Cats with ties to both the AJHL, and new Head Coach and General Manager Nigel Dube.
Gilbert played with the Brooks Bandits, before joining the University of Lethbridge. Since his playing days, he has went on to scout for Dube when he was in Camrose, while also becoming a teacher in Lethbridge.
“I’m very humbled and excited to be a part of the Lloydminster community. I look forward to working closely with the Bobcat’s staff, players and board to help bring success to the program and community,” Gilbert said. “Our plan is to focus on players who bring a high level of creativity, character and work ethic. We plan to bring in players that will contribute to the development of not only our on ice success, but also develop into well rounded individuals.”
“Andrew has a great eye for identifying the players we are looking to bring into our foundation. He understands the importance of the players character and really does his homework and makes sure the values we hold for our organization are met during that time,” Dube said. “I am excited for Andrew to be joining our organization as he understands and is committed to our plan moving forward.”
Lonke, meanwhile, was the Head Scout in Minot with the Minot Minotauros of the NAHL prior to taking over U.S. Scouting with Camrose. Currently the head coach for the New Prague Trojans high school team in Minnesota, Lonke has been able to identify numerous players who have went on to play NCAA Division 1 Hockey.
“Cory is a huge asset for our organization in his ability to recruit top end players and more importantly, top end people,” Dube said. “He is also very connected in the NCAA world and has several connections that will help our players move on to the next level. History speaks for itself with players he has recruited in the past. Another important key to bringing Cory on was his understanding of where our organization wants to go moving forward.”
The Bobcat’s will be announcing more additions to their scouting staff in the near future, as they continue to creating an on ice and off ice product for the Border City to be proud of.