There will be some new faces on the Hockey Nova Scotia Board of Directors next season.

Hockey Nova Scotia is pleased to announce the new members of our board:

Chair of Junior Hockey: Calvin Byard
Chair of Risk Management: Geoff Churchill
Director of Officiating: Todd Thomander
Chair of Elite Hockey: Steve Coates



Calvin Byard has been a member of our board for more than four years. A valued member of the Hockey Nova Scotia Risk Management Committee which he has chaired since 2020, Calvin is taking on a new challenge as our Chair of Junior Hockey.



Geoff Churchill replaces Calvin as Chair of Risk Management. Originally from Newfoundland, Geoff has been living in the Annapolis Valley for almost 25 years. Hockey has been a huge part of his family's life and he has volunteered time over the years as a coach and hockey administrator. Over the past five years, Geoff has been a key member of Hockey Nova Scotia's risk management team.



Todd Thomander joins Hockey Nova Scotia as our new Director of Officiating (a role formerly known as Referee-in-Chief). A referee with more than four decades of experience, Todd was hired as a linesman by the QMJHL in 1994. He became a referee three years later, a role he continued in for 25 years. Along the way, he officiated four IIHF events including the 1996 World Juniors in Boston. A former Referee-in-Chief with the Sackville Minor Hockey Association for five seasons, Todd is currently a supervisor of officials in the QMJHL.



Finally, Steve Coates joins Hockey Nova Scotia once again as our Chair of Elite Hockey after serving a four year term in the role between 2015-19. Steve is a longtime hockey volunteer who was a coach, manager and administrator with the Cole Harbour Bel Ayr Minor Hockey Association for a decade. He also spent ten years with Hockey Nova Scotia's Minor Council as Dartmouth Regional Director and South Conference Coordinator. Steve is also one of the organizers of the special needs and blind hockey programs at the Shearwater Arena.

Please join us in welcoming Calvin, Geoff, Todd and Steve to their new roles on our board of directors.

We would also like to thank Heather Campbell (outgoing Chair of Junior Hockey), Rick Hill (outgoing Referee-in-Chief), and Kevin Benjamin (outgoing Chair of Elite Hockey) for their years of service to Hockey Nova Scotia and hockey in Nova Scotia. Your time and commitment was greatly appreciated.