Michael Hengen will be on the bench as an assistant coach for the Prince George Cougars in 2014-15.
Hengen will also serve double duty as the team's full-time strength and conditioning coach. He joins Mark Holick's coaching staff after a successful four-year stint as an assistant coach with the Penticton Vees of the B.C. Hockey League.
"I'm extremely excited that I get to be part of the turn-around and the New Ice Age in Prince George," said Hengen in a statement. "It's always been a huge goal of mine to get to the Western Hockey League as a coach and I'm unbelievably fortunate to have this opportunity.
"I'm honoured to coach alongside Mark Holick. He's got a very strong coaching pedigree and this could be a life-changing opportunity for my family and I."
Hengen replaces assistant coach Jason Becker, who left the Cougars in June for a head coaching job with the Okanagan Hockey Academy's midget prep teams in Penticton.
Hengen, who turns 27 in November, was born and raised in Surrey. He was originally selected by the Swift Current Broncos in the fifth round of the 2002 WHL Bantam draft.
He played 226 career regular season games in the WHL with Swift Current, Edmonton, Moose Jaw, Calgary and Saskatoon, netting 17 goals and 229 penalty minutes.
In 2007-08, he captained the Vees to a BCHL league championship and a birth in the Doyle Cup. Following his junior career, he played two professional seasons in Germany, spending time with the Fischtown Pinguins, Deggendorfer SC and Herner EV.
In the last four years as an assistant coach with the Vees, Hengen, along with head coach Fred Harbinson, compiled an astounding regular season record of 163-53-5-13.
In 2011-12, Hengen helped lead the Vees to a 54-4-0-2 regular season record and the Junior A Royal Bank Cup championship.
"Mike is a very hard-working, loyal and trustworthy individual who comes from a winning program," said Cougars head coach Holick. "I've known Mike for quite some time, and I'm impressed with his ideas and his coaching style. I look forward to seeing our defencemen continue to develop under his watch."
The Cougars main camp begins Aug. 21. They open the WHL regular season with a pair of games on the road in Portland Sept. 20 and Tri-Cities Sept. 21. They return to CN Centre Sept. 26 for a two-game homestand against the Kelowna Rockets.
