Blazers hire a pair of new assistant coaches

The Kamloops Blazers have hired Steve Marr and Brayden Toma as Assistant Coaches for the upcoming 2025-2026 hockey season.

Marr is a Kamloops native and comes to the Blazers from the North Shore Warriors hockey academy of the Canadian Sport School Hockey League (CSSHL). Marr was the Director of Hockey Development along with the Head Coach of the U15 Prep Team.

During his time with the North Shore Warriors, Marr coached notable young players that have played NHL games including Connor Bedard and Fraser Minten.

Marr’s playing career started in Kamloops through the minor hockey system before playing four seasons with the Medicine Hat Tigers from 2001 to 2005. He was the captain of the Tigers for two seasons including when he won a WHL Championship with the Tigers in 2004.

“I was fortunate to coach Steve in Medicine Hat for two seasons,” commented General Manager and Shaun Clouston. “Steve possesses passion and strong communication skills that allow him to connect with today’s players. With his experience as a player and a coach, we are excited for what he will bring to our team.”

Toma joins the Blazers after spending this past season as the Head Coach of the St. George’s School U18 Prep team. Previously, Toma spent six seasons as the Head Coach of the Northern Alberta Xtreme U15 team of the CSSHL where they captured back-to-back championships in 2022-2023 and 2023-2024.

Toma, who is from Ardrossan, AB, has also coached numerous players that have played in the WHL including Gannon Laroque, Ben Hemmerling, and Cole Reschny.

“Brayden has had tremendous success with many current and future WHL players at the CSSHL level,” said Clouston. “Brayden will be a great addition to our team and a valuable resource to our players.

With the addition of two full-time assistant coaches, Chris Murray will not be returning in his part time role with the hockey club. We would like to thank Chris for his commitment and contributions to the Blazers organization and wish him all the best moving forward.