Head Coach: Ty Pracek
The 33-year-old Mississauga, Ontario product joined the Voodoos on July 16, 2026, as the sixth head coach in Voodoos history.
Tyler spent the 2024-25 and 2025-26 seasons as a head coach in the NOJHL between the Iroquois Falls Storm and, most recently, the Kirkland Lake Gold Miners.
Along with his junior coaching resume, he is also a Certified Hockey Canada Skills Coach, which takes him across the country to run clinics.
When he is not coaching or running clinics, Pracek can be found officiating hockey games wearing the referee/linesman uniform.
Assistant Coach: Vitali Yachmenev
Former NHLer Vitali Yachmenev was hired as an assistant coach to begin the 2024-25 season.
As a player, Yachmenev put up more than 200 points in two seasons of junior hockey in North Bay and helped the North Bay Centennials capture an OHL championship in 1994.
Yachmenev went on to play eight seasons in the NHL for the Los Angeles Kings and Nashville Predators before finishing off his playing career in the KHL. In his rookie season in LA he played on a line with NHL legend Wayne Gretzky.
Yachmenev also brings with him seven years of coaching experience from the Kontinental Hockey League in Russia and spent a portion of a season as an associate coach with the Powassan Voodoos in 2018.
Yachmenev is very familiar with the Voodoos organization. Not only did he help as an assistant coach for a portion of the 2017-18 season, he also had his son Tomas play 3 seasons with the Voodoos.
GM and President of Hockey Operations: Chris Dawson
Chris Dawson took on the role of General Manager with the Powassan Voodoos back when the franchise was born in the summer of 2014.
Prior to working with the Voodoos, Dawson served as General Manager for the North Bay Jr. Trappers, winning the NOJHL title in 2013. In addition, he was named NOJHL Director of the Year in 2010-2011 serving as general manager and team president.
During his time with the Voodoos, Dawson helped assemble the team that won the NOJHL championship in 2016-2017 and has been named NOJHL General Manager of the Year three times: in 2016, 2017 and 2026, respectively. Dawson was also named as the GM on the NOJHL's second-All-Star team in 2024-25 and as the GM on the NOJHL's third All-Star team in 2023-24.
Chris currently resides in North Bay, ON with his wife Lee Anne, daughter Leah and son Caleb.
Phone: (705) 497-4371 Email: powassanvoodoos@gmail.com
Associate General Manager & Director of Scouting: Brent Tomlinson
Brent Tomlinson (Bracebridge, ON) has spent many years and various roles with the Voodoos and currently holds the position of Associate General Manager and Director of Scouting. He previously served as an assistant coach with Powassan for two seasons, helping guide the team to their first NOJHL championship in the spring of 2017.
From 2017 to 2019, Brent served as the General Manager and Co-Head Coach of the Huntsville Otters, the Voodoos Junior 'C' affiliate team. Tomlinson has also served as the Northern Ontario Scout for the Niagara Ice Dogs and Erie Otters.
Brent currently lives in Bracebridge, ON with his wife Kelly and their two sons, Tucker and Barrett.
Phone: (705) 641-9073 Email: brentvoodooshockey@gmail.com
North America Scout - Billy Griffiths
Billy Griffiths (Ottawa, ON) joined the Voodoos in the summer of 2022 as North America Scout.
Griffiths joins the Voodoos as he continues his long hockey relationship with Peter Goulet, the new Voodoos head coach and VP of Hockey Operations. Griffiths has been working with Goulet since 2010 with Nepean, Kingston, Brampton, Trenton and now the Voodoos in 2022.
The Ottawa product will travel in Ontario, across Canada and even into the United States, as he seeks out future Voodoos talent.
Griffiths is excited to join the Voodoos to start a new chapter in his hockey scouting career.
Cell: (613) 286-9537 Email: billgriffiths123@yahoo.ca
North America Scout - Kerwin O'Neil
Kerwin O'Neil (Smith Falls, ON) - as a player O'Neil was invited to the Pittsburgh Penguins affiliate team, as well as played semi-pro for the Schenectady Chiefs in the ACHL, 2 years overseas, was drafted by the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in the OHL and played Junior ‘A’ for the Smiths Falls Bears.
O'Neil was head instructor at Rideau Lakes Hockey School in Smiths Falls for 10 years and was owner, president and manager of the Richmond Royals and Stittsville Royals.
Joined Peter Goulet and Bill Griffiths in 2015 and is in his 6th year of scouting in Ontario, across Canada and the United States looking for talented players to join the Voodoos. O'Neil is excited to join the Voodoos to start a new chapter in his hockey scouting career.
Cell: (613) 284-7336 Email: koneil7@hotmail.com
