Coaches

Coaches

The WBS Junior Knights have some of the top coaches in the country with college, junior or professional playing and coaching experience. In addition, the Knights offer seasonal guest instructors, as well as former Knights players returning from professional or college hockey to mentor a new generation of Knights. The Knights coaches are committed to providing each and every Knights player an opportunity to excel at the highest level of hockey, AND OUR TRACK RECORD IS UNMATCHED!
Coach-Alex-Vasko

Coach Alex Vasko - WBS Junior Knights Head Coach and Hockey Director

Coach Alex Vasko is the WBS Jr Knights head coach as well as the hockey director for the organization. Vasko is a native to Kiev, Ukraine and represents the former Soviet Union Hockey Training School. Coach Vasko started his professional playing career in Eastern Europe Hockey League in 1995. In 1999 Alex moved to the United States to continue his playing career in Gold Rush AWHL, Sioux City Musketeers USHL and Mohawk Valley UHL. Alex also participated in NHL Rookie Camps of Boston Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning and in ECHL, UHL Training Camps.
In 2007, he moved to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton area to begin his coaching career as a Head Coach with WBS Jr. Knights Youth Hockey Club. For five years in a row, Coach Vasko has been selected as AYHL All Star Game Coach. From the 2012 through 2014 hockey seasons, he led his team to a National Championship and in 2012 won the National Championship with his Bantam Major AAA Team.
Coach Vasko has coached and trained NHL player Ivan Provorov – Philadelphia Flyers (NHL Draft 2015, 1st Round, 7th Overall), Denis Smirnov – Colorado Avalanche (NHL Draft 2017, 6th Round, 156th Overall), CJ Yakimowicz – St. Louis Blues (NHL Draft 2014, 6th Round, 172nd Overall), Nikita Pavlychev – Pittsburgh Penguins (NHL Draft 2015, 7th Round, 197th Overall) and Dmitri Zaitsev – Washington Capitals (NHL Draft 2016, 7th Round, 207th Overall). In addition to the six NHL draft picks, Coach Vasko has developed players currently committed by the Big 10 and other Division 1 Colleges: Denis Smirnov, Nikita Pavlychev, Paul DeNaples and Jacob Goldowski – Penn State, NCAA Div. I – Big Ten; Eugene Fadyeyev – Ohio State, NCAA Div. I – Big Ten.

Coach Ray Giroux - WBS Junior Knights Coach and Operations Manager

Coach Ray Giroux is the operations manager of the WBS Jr Knights program as well as the 2009 AYHL head coach. Giroux is a Canadian ice hockey defenceman that played in the National Hockey League (NHL) as well as with Metallurg Novokuznetsk of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).
Giroux, who shoots left, played collegiately at Yale University. During the 1997–98 season, he captained the best team in school history as Yale won their first ECAC regular season title (Yale has since won another regular season title in the 2008-09 season) and advanced to the NCAA tournament after only having been picked to finish in 10th place at the beginning of the season. In addition to being a 1st-team All American, Giroux was named ECAC Player of the Year as well as the league’s best offensive defenceman and was one of ten finalists for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award, given annually to the nation’s top collegiate player.
Coach Giroux spent time in many NHL organizations before leaving the US to play overseas. He has played in the AHL for the Bridgeport Sound Tigers and in the NHL for both the New York Islanders and the New Jersey Devils. Playing for AK Bars, Coach Giroux became Russian champion (2005/06) and IIHF European Champions Cup winner (2007). Giroux made his Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) debut playing with SKA Saint Petersburg during the inaugural 2008–09 KHL season and played for five seasons. He participated in the 2009 Kontinental Hockey League All-Star Game.
Coach-Ray-Giroux

Coach Richard Laganiere – WBS Junior Knights 2008 AYHL Coach

Coach Rich Laganiere is the coach for the WBS Jr Knights AYHL 2008 team. Laganiere played in the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL) for the Pembroke Lumber Kings where he had 43 points in his final season.

The Canadian Junior Hockey League is a national organization of 10 Junior A hockey leagues in Canada. The CJHL represents 131 teams and more than 2,900 players. The CJHL is the only sanctioned Junior A Hockey League in Canada. Each year players compete for the Royal Bank Cup National Junior A Championship and CJHL players are also selected to represent Canada at the World Junior A Challenge as well as compete at the annual CJHL Prospects Game.

Coach Christopher Laganiere – WBS Junior Knights Mite Director

Coach Chris Laganiere, the son of Binghamton Hall of Famer and former NHLer Pierre Laganiere, comes from a significant hockey pedigree and offers an immeasurable experience to our program.

Laganiere played in the Central Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL) for the Brockville Braces, Pembroke Lumber Kings and the Hawsbury Hawks. During his time with the organization, Laganiere won 3 championships, was awarded the MVP Fred Page Cup award and was a 2 time Royal Bank Cup participant.

Laganiere attended SUNY Oswego where he was selected as the 2011 Oswego State Outstanding Male Athlete and was 1st team All-SUNYAC 2009-2010. He was a 2 time Division 3 Frozen Four participant and was inducted into the Oswego State 100 point club.

Laganiere went on to become the head coach of the Binghamton Junior Senators NA3HL (2016-2018). During Laganiere’s leadership at the Senators, in 2016-17, the team had an impressive record of 45-1-1, 91 points and was 1st in Northeast Division. In 2017, the Senators won the Northeast Division and lost in the Silver Cup semi-finals to Granite City.

In addition to coaching at the Junior A level, Chris had the opportunity to play for a number of great coaches including:

  • Pierre Laganiere – prolific scorer with Broome Dusters, former New York Ranger draft pick
  • Sheldon Keefe – current Toronto Marlies (AHL) Head Coach, 2018 Calder Cup winning Head Coach
  • Eric Veilleux – current Moncton Wildcats (QMHJL) Head Coach, former AHL Head Coach
  • Ed Gosek-current Oswego State (NCAA Div 3) Head Coach, 2007 National Championship winning Head Coach

Coach Chris Cordaro - WBS Jr Knights Strength & Conditioning Coach

In addition to his role as the Strength & Conditioning coach for the WBS Knights teams, Coach Chris operates Balance Ultimate Fitness and has been a personal trainer and strength & conditioning coach for over 20 years. Chris oversees all aspects of designing and implementing the team’s performance training program, as well as monitoring the players’ performance, workload and recovery. He uses the most up-to-date, effective training procedures to outline the best and safest way to get results. Chris’s off-season training program has been recommended by coaches, advisors and agents.

Coach Sebastien Caron – WBS Jr Knights Goaltending Coach

Coach Caron is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) was a fourth-round pick, 86th overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft. During the 2005-06 season, in a game against the Philadelphia Flyers, Caron gained national attention through his great save against Brian Savage.

In 2007, Caron played for the Anaheim Ducks who went on to win the Stanley Cup. Caron furthered his playing career with the Philadelphia Flyers, Tampa Bay Lightning, and the Nashville Predators of the National Hockey League.He signed with the Iserlohn Roosters of the German top flight Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL) for the 2012-13 season and remained with the team until October 2013,when he transferred to fellow DEL club Hamburg Freezers.

Coach Brice Baricevic – WBS Jr Knights 14U Bantam Head Coach

Baricevic is the coach of the WBS Jr Knights Bantam U14 team. He is currently the assistant coach for the King’s College Monarchs NCAA Division III women’s team and served as Head Coach for last season. In his role, Baricevic recruits for the Monarchs as well as manages the player’s academic success.

Prior to Kings, Baricevic was at Maryville University in St. Louis, Missouri where he was an assistant coach. He was responsible for the skill development of the student-athletes while also assisting with the operations of the program.

Baricevic has a wealth of experience working for USA Hockey and was the head coach and skills / skating instruction for the Southern Illinois IceHawks. As a Level 4 USA Hockey certified coach, Baricevic led the 8u, 10u, 14u, 16u, and 18u IceHawks over the course of the past six years. Also, he was a Central District Evaluator for USA Hockey. Baricevic graduated from the University of Missouri-St. Louis in 2014 with a Bachelors of Arts degree in History.

On the ice, Coach Baricevic played juniors for Saint Louis in the GLJHL. The Great Lakes Junior Hockey League is based in the Great Lakes region of the Midwestern United States. From 2008 until 2012, the league was a USA Hockey-sanctioned junior ice hockey league.

From 2016 to present, Coach Baricevic owns and operates the Baricevic Hockey School in Belleville, IL which operates during the summer months. In his hockey school, students range from 8u house level to 16u AAA where Brice develops practice plans according to each individual player’s skills. He introduces power skating concepts and edgework to improve skating skill and speed and balance.

In addition to his role as Bantam U14 Coach, Baricevic will serve as an on-ice coach for other teams as well as an on-ice coach for camps and clinics at Revolution. The WBS Jr Knights are a USA Hockey sanctioned youth franchise with players ranging from mites (age 6) to Bantam (age 14) led by Head Coach/Director of Hockey Alex Vasko.