Simon Ferguson leaves West Kelowna Warriors for Vancouver Giants
WEST KELOWNA, B.C. — The West Kelowna Warriors are searching for a new head coach after Simon Ferguson left the BCHL club to join the Vancouver Giants’ coaching staff.
The Warriors announced Ferguson’s departure on Aug. 3, saying he had stepped down as head coach and general manager effective immediately. The Vancouver Giants announced the same day that Ferguson, 43, had been hired as an assistant coach with the Western Hockey League team. The Warriors’ release described his new position as associate coach.
Assistant coach Wyatt Head and director of scouting Liam Blackburn will handle the Warriors’ hockey operations while the organization searches for a new head coach. The team expects to have Ferguson’s replacement in place before training camp begins Sept. 4.
Ferguson spent more than six years with the Warriors and completed five full seasons as the team’s head coach.
During those five seasons, West Kelowna posted a combined regular-season record of 161 wins, 81 losses, 26 overtime losses and two shootout losses in 270 games. The Warriors reached the conference final during the 2021-22 playoffs.
The Warriors set franchise records with 40 wins and a .769 points percentage during Ferguson’s final season in West Kelowna.
The team finished first overall in the BCHL’s 2025-26 regular-season standings with a 40-11-3-0 record and 83 points. The finish earned West Kelowna its first Ron Boileau Memorial Trophy, which is awarded to the BCHL’s top regular-season team.
West Kelowna also allowed the fewest goals in the league during the 2025-26 season. Its power play and penalty kill both ranked among the BCHL’s top three.
Ferguson was named a finalist for the Joe Tennant Memorial Trophy as the BCHL’s coach of the year in two of his final three seasons, including 2025-26. Cowichan Valley Capitals head coach and general manager Cam Keith received the award for the 2025-26 season.
Warriors owner and governor John Murphy credited Ferguson with establishing a culture centred on winning, developing players and contributing to the community.
“We want to thank Simon for his time with the Warriors,” Murphy said in the team’s announcement.
Murphy described Ferguson as a strong hockey coach and a person of high character and wished him and his family well as they moved into the next stage of his coaching career.
Ferguson thanked the Warriors’ owners, players, staff members, billets, volunteers, sponsors and fans following the announcement.
“West Kelowna will always hold a special place in my heart,” Ferguson said, adding that he would continue to support the Warriors.
Ferguson’s tenure also included several individual player achievements.
Tyson Jugnauth and Isaiah Norlin were named BCHL defencemen of the year while playing under Ferguson, and Angelo Zol received the league’s top-goaltender award.
According to the Warriors and Giants, 11 players coached by Ferguson in West Kelowna have gone on to play in the American Hockey League, while one has played in the National Hockey League. Six Warriors players from his tenure have been selected in the NHL draft, and dozens earned opportunities to play college hockey.
Vancouver Giants head coach and general manager Michael Dyck said Ferguson’s experience with recruitment and player development aligned with the WHL club’s approach.
“Simon brings a high level of energy, intensity, preparation and a development-first mindset that fits well with the team’s identity,” Dyck said in the Giants’ announcement.
Before joining the Warriors, Ferguson spent three seasons as head coach of the U18 AAA Okanagan Rockets.
His playing career included five seasons of junior hockey with the Lethbridge Hurricanes and Kelowna Rockets, followed by nine professional seasons in the AHL, ECHL and Europe.
Ferguson won a WHL championship with Kelowna in 2003, a Memorial Cup with the Rockets in 2004 and a Calder Cup with the Hershey Bears in 2010.
Warriors owner and CEO Rod Hume said the club supported Ferguson’s goal of coaching at higher levels of the sport. Hume said the organization would interview several candidates as it worked to fill the vacant head-coaching position.
The Quilpituk Creek wildfire had been remapped at approximately 742 hectares by Tuesday morning, a substantial increase from the 550-hectare estimate published by Central Okanagan Emergency Operations at noon Monday.