Brien Gemmell named head coach and assistant GM of Richmond Sockeyes
Published 11:00 pm Wednesday, June 17, 2026
Another year, another new chapter for Brien Gemmell.
In three years, Gemmell has been with three different franchises in the Pacific Junior Hockey League (PJHL) and now the B.C. Hockey Conference (BCHC).
Two years ago, he coached the White Rock Whalers to a very respectable 29-win season. Last year, he guided the expansion Cloverdale HC franchise to an amazing 24-18-0-2 regular season record—good for 50 points. He oversaw the squad win their very first playoff series before losing in round two to the Whalers. Now, Gemmell will hang his hat with the Richmond Sockeyes as the head coach and assistant GM for the 2026-27 season.
“I wanted to get back behind the bench and this opportunity arose,” said Gemmell, the longtime athletic director at Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary School. “I had a great time in Cloverdale and I’m proud of what I could help the team accomplish there.”
He said when the Sockeyes job opened up, he let Cloverdale HC know he was interested in it immediately.
“The opportunity to come and coach a team like the Richmond Sockeyes—for the last few years of coaching that I may have left in me—I couldn’t pass it up,” he told the Cloverdale Reporter. “I’m also excited at the opportunity to be part of the BCHC, to be able to have input, and be part of it as it grows into something new.”
After realignment, Gemmell felt the time was right to make the move.
As part of that off-season realignment, the Sockeyes moved up to the new B.C. Junior “A” League, the BCHC, while Cloverdale remained in the PJHL as a Junior “B” team. In total, 22 teams moved up to the BCHC from both the PJHL and the KIJHL.
A longtime A1 hockey coach in the Cloverdale Minor Hockey Association, Gemmell added that he’s already working on recruiting and trying to get things ramped up for the upcoming season.
“I’m looking forward to being on the bench again,” he said. “When you’re on the bench, you’re engaging with the players in terms of what they’re doing, you have that competitiveness you get just from coaching against other teams. It’s exciting for me to be able to get behind the bench again, but also to get out on the ice for practices and be there with the players, it’s really a lot of fun.”
He said he’s also looking forward to helping kids develop so they can move up to higher levels of hockey.
Gemmell noted he’s grateful for his time in Cloverdale, even if it was short.
“I thank Ronnie Paterson and Rob Rose for the opportunity to come over and GM the team in Cloverdale,” he said. “Now, I’m looking forward to the next chapter of my life in junior hockey by going on to head coach the Richmond Sockeyes.”
For more info on the BCHC, visit bchchockey.ca.
For more info on Cloverdale HC and the PJHL, visit cloverdalehc.com and pjhl.net.