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PERSONNELScott Cunningham: Head Coach
Scott Cunningham rejoins the Bighorns for his 5th season behind the bench. He joined the team in December, 2004 and led the Bighorns (see Cutthroats) to the NORPAC Title in their first season in the league. A native of Ft. Saskatchewan, Alberta, Cunningham played for the St. Albert Saints (AJHL). The graduate of the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology has had coaching assignments in Liberty Lake Lumberjacks (NPHL), the Helena Ice Pirates (AFHL) and with the Great Falls Americans (AWHL) before guiding the Cutthroats. Scott is a no nonsense coach who brings a great deal of experience and success to our program. He instills the values we expect from our players and will be a great attribute to both the Cutthroats and Bighorns. Cunningham and his wife have resided in Helena since 2000. When Cunningham resigned from the Americans in 2002, he dedicated his time to working with the youth hockey organization in Helena. Cunningham’s coaching career has been marked with success, as he guided his teams at the junior level deep into the playoffs in each season. As important as those statistics are, Cunningham cites the promotion of his players to the college and pro ranks as equally important factors. “There is nothing more gratifying to seeing a players face when he has achieved his goal of playing college hockey,” Cunningham said from his home in Helena, MT. “I am looking forward to coaching this season as the difficult challenge of returning to league championship back to Helena gives both the team and I something to strive for every night. My goals are simple. I want to prepare these players for the jump to the higher ranks of junior hockey and college.” Scott Cunningham’s Coaching Record: 2008-2009 Helena Bighorns, Cascade Cup Champions.(NOR-PAC) 2007-2008 Helena Bighorns, Cascade Cup Champions. (NOR-PAC) Chris Hartly: Associate CoachChris Hartly brings a wealth of experience and success to Helena as he joins Head Coach, Scott Cunningham, in their defense of the Cascade Cup. Hartly is entering his sixth season of coaching Junior Hockey. In his first season at the helm for the Valencia Flyers of the Western States Hockey League, he led his team to their most successful season in that club’s history. The Flyers finished with a second place finish in the regular season under Hartly and came within one game of reaching the league finals and having a berth to Nationals. A native Oregonian, As a player, Hartly played three years of Junior Hockey all across North America (AFHL, KIJHL, BCHL, SJHL). Longtime Helena hockey fans may remember Hartly as he played for the Helena Ice Pirates in 1997-98. Hartly went on to play NCAA college hockey at Wentworth Institute of Technology (WIT) in Boston, MA. The Management of Technology graduate helped secure three straight ECAC Northeast Championships for WIT. He was named to the NCAA All-Rookie Team (2000-2001) and left as the schools top scoring defenseman. Upon completing his senior year, Hartly signed a free-agent contract with the Lubbock Cotton Kings of the CHL. After a brief pro career, Hartly set his sights on coaching. Coach Hartly began his coaching career in 2005 as an assistant coach with the Eugene Generals in NORPAC. That season, the Generals won the Pacific Division title before falling to the eventual Cascade Cup Champion Helena Bighorns (nee Queen City Cutthroats). After that season Hartly was promoted to Head Coach and led the Generals to two successful seasons before joining the upstart Flyers, last season. Bighorn President and co-owner, Mike Butters, says Hartly brings a whole new layer of experience to the Bighorns. “Chris Hartly is a quality coach with very impressive credentials. His commitment to the development of his players and the enhancement of their college pursuits only adds to the coaching staff. The combination of Chris and Scott Cunningham only adds to the depth of the development our players will receive. ” Butters added, “We are excited to have him join our program and feel that the players who play under Chris and Scott (Cunningham) will greatly benefit from it.” Mike Butters: President /Co-owner, CEO
A native of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, Mike has spent over 17 years in the pro and junior hockey ranks as a Player, Coach, General Manager and Owner. As a former Junior A Player in both the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League and Western Hockey League, he has captured several league championships and regular season titles. Butters also played 8 years of pro hockey signing contracts with the Detroit Red Wings, Quebec Nordiques and Montreal Canadiens, playing for their minor league affiliates. Mike was also instrumental in the formation of the West Coast Hockey League, where he was the G.M. of the Bakersfield Fog in their inaugural season. Butters left hockey to pursue a career in the film business, where he has appeared in over 90 television commercials, 35 films and numerous guest spots on network television shows like ABC’s “Once & Again” and “Beverly Hills 90210.” During this time, Butters also played professional roller hockey in the RHI and Pro Beach Hockey. He captained Team Canada in roller hockey for two years, playing alongside Detroit Red Wing and St. Louis Blues goaltender, Manny Legace. Butters teamed up with Oren Koules to put a junior hockey team in Helena, Montana. “Having the opportunity to return to junior A hockey has been an experience of a lifetime,” explains Butters. “In Helena, we want to develop these young men to the best of our abilities. Preparing these young men for college and the rest of their hockey lives is our priority … we love it!” Oren Koules: Owner, CFO
A native of Chicago, Illinois, Koules has an extensive hockey background, playing his minor hockey in the windy city before making the leap to the Western Hockey League, playing for the Spokane Chiefs, Great Falls Americans and Medicine Hat Tigers. From there, Koules entered professional hockey, attending the Chicago Blackhawks training camp and playing for their minor league affiliates in Hampton Roads, VA and Flint, MI. Upon his retirement from pro hockey, Koules entered the world of finance as a top floor trader on the Chicago Mercantile exchange. It was this experience that drew him into the film business. Koules currently owns Evolution Entertainment, which represents several successful of that businesses top actors. Evolution also produces feature films. Koules has produced several successful Hollywood films such as "John Q", “Set It Off”, “Lockdown” and the current horror sucesses, “SAW.” Koules is also the producer of the hit TV show, "Two & a Half Men" which stars Charlie Sheen. While playing men’s league hockey in Los Angeles, Koules played alongside Mike Butters, where the two quickly developed a friendship and laid plans to acquire a junior A hockey team. “Both Mike and I share the same passion for the game and I wanted to give something back to the game that gave to me for so many years.” Koules added, “Seeing these young men progress and develop is one of the most rewarding experiences anyone can have.” Katie Bauer-Butters: Guest & Client ServicesKatie Bauer-Butters assists the Bighorns in the administration office. Katie comes to the Bighorns with a background in administration and college sports. Bauer Butters played NCAA Division I basketball for Cal Poly SLO and has managed several retail stores in the Los Angeles area before moving to Helena. Her knowledge of office operations and attention to the needs of hockey spectators and corporate partners is of great value to the Bighorns Dan Coughlin: VideographerDan has been shooting highlight video of Helena's sporting events for the past 7 years. Being a diehard Bighorn Hockey fan, he has captured highlights of the Bighorn games since they came into existence. When the Cutthroats joined Helena's hockey scene, Dan captured Cutthroat highlights for both of their seasons. He has edited the best clips of these games into a Season Highlight DVD each year. Throughout the years, he has produced a number of DVDs featuring individual players and their season highlights. Also, many of the players have used his video clips and computer equipment to build individual highlight tapes to add to game tapes to send to prospective college coaches. Anne Wheeler: Director of EducationAnne is entering her 8th season as the director of education for the Bighorns. She has housed players for 10 years and is no stranger to the Helena Ice Arena as she can often be seen donning her gear as she plays for the Helena Women’s team. Anne goes to great measures to insure of all our players maintain a high grade point average and offers tutoring for those players in need. She also assists Bighorns players in attaining all of their educational goals. |
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