WHL’s Blazers name Clouston head coach, retain Sydor as associate coach

KAMLOOPS, B.C. – Shaun Clouston has been named the next head coach of the Western Hockey League’s Kamloops Blazers with Darryl Sydor announced as the club’s associate coach.

Clouston, from Viking, Alta., coached the Medicine Hat Tigers the last 16 seasons winning WHL championships in both 2004 and 2007.

Clouston replaces Serge Lajoie, who coached Kamloops for one season before he and the Blazers parted ways this spring.

Kamloops went 28-32-6-2 this past season and lost in the first round of playoffs in six games to the Victoria Royals.

Edmonton’s Sydor is a former NHL defenceman who played 1,291 games and won Stanley Cups with the Dallas Stars in 1999 and the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2004.

He was an assistant coach of the Minnesota Wild and St. Louis Blues for nine seasons after retiring as a player. Sydor was an assistant coach of the Blazers in 2018-19.