Jason Briggs hired as new GM of the Los Banos Wolves

Jason Briggs hired as the new GM

of the Los Banos Wolves

May 27, 2011

AFHL Commissioner Anthony Furino announced earlier today that Jason Briggs has been hired as the new coach and GM of the Los Banos Wolves.  Briggs will be formally introduced as the third coach/GM in franchise history at a news conference tomorrow afternoon in Los Banos.

“It is a great pleasure to welcome Jason Briggs as the new coach and GM of the Los Banos Wolves,” said Furino. “I was very impressed with Briggs’ track record and desire to compete in the AFHL. He coaches his players and manages his team with intelligence, discipline, and structure with a focus on both present and future success.”

Briggs said what appealed to him about the Wolves franchise was more than their core of young players that includes Steven Stamkos, Jordan Eberle, and Jack Johnson.

“It’s that, but it’s also that they have veteran players who can help win a Stanley Cup as soon as next season,” Briggs said. “Jordan Staal, Milan Hejduk, Ryan Malone, Tomas Vokoun… these are guys who know what it takes to win.”

Briggs, 34, replaces last year’s coach/GM Andrew Fiorentino, who was given the top job after Bill Ursulak was fired at the end of the franchise’s first season.

“Briggs is a winner,” said the AFHL Commissioner. “He’s a guy that pushes people to the limit. And that team has a lot of guys that need to be pushed.”

The Wolves missed last year’s playoffs by just a few points. They will try to make the playoffs for the first time in franchise history in this upcoming 2011-12 season.

“It’ll definitely give the us a shot in the arm. It’s going to be a tough training camp but I’m looking forward to it,” Wolves forward Steven Stamkos said. “Any time you have a coaching change, usually your team responds positively, so it should be an interesting training camp.”

During a phone interview last night, Wolves’ defenseman Jack Johnson said he’s very excited about the coaching change.

“We need to change the culture and I think he’s the guy to do it,” Johnson said. “We have taken a lot of heat and deservedly so. The fans had better expectations last season and I think there’s no excuses. I just think it’s a positive step. It’s a crossroads and I think it’s an important one.”

The AFHL Commissioner also noted that the Los Banos Wolves franchise name will be changed shortly before the AFHL Entry Draft kicks off in the last week of June.