JR. CANADIENS BELLISSIMO NAMED OJHL COACH OF YEAR
April 3, 2023, Mississauga, ON – …. Vince Bellissimo of the Ontario Junior Hockey League’s Toronto Jr. Canadiens has been named OJHL Coach of the Year for the 2022-23 season, the league announced today.
The 40-year-old coached the Jr. Canadiens to their second straight regular season championship – and the Brant Snow Memorial Trophy – in the 22-team Ontario Junior Hockey League. Their record this year was a sparkling 45-5-2-2.
“It’s very special because obviously it is a team award,” Bellissimo told the OJHL. “What has made our team special has been the culture and day-to-day environment. The players recognize from the minute they step into our program that we have a full staff of individuals that really care and are completely devoted to the team and go above and beyond for the players. And I think that rubs off on the players and sets the tone.”
Bellissimo specifically mentioned general manager Blake Ricci, director of hockey operations Rick Varone, director of scouting Mike D’Orazio, director of analytics Brandon Lustig, medical team leader Dr. Bryan Ma, manager of social media and game day operations Sam Hossack, lead assistant coaches David DeMarinis and John Luciani, assistant coach Zach Bell, goalie coach Daniel Bellissimo and
equipment manager Johnny "Zamboni" Guthenberg.
“It’s such a special group,” he said “And I’m filled with gratitude that I’ve had the opportunity to work with these people. It’s made me a way better coach and a way better person.”
In 2017-18, Bellissimo coached the Aurora Tigers to a 36-12-1-5 record in the OJHL, good for first in the old North-East Conference. In the playoffs, he led the Tigers to the conference finals before losing to the eventual Buckland Cup Champion and National Finalists, the Wellington Dukes.
He joined the Jr. Canadiens ahead of the 2019-20 season.
His regular season coaching record in the OJHL is 160-39-6-11.
Equally important to Bellissimo is graduating his players to the next level. Three members of his 2021-23 teams will play Division I hockey beginning next year at RIT in Rochester, NY. Others committed to DI Brown and Notre Dame. Owen Saye recently committed to the Western Mustangs in U SPORTS.
Bellissimo, who played in the OJHL, was a four-year man at NCAA Division I Western Michigan. He then played eight seasons professionally in North America and Europe. He was a fifth round draft pick of the Florida Panthers in 2002.
Bellissimo got into coaching “by accident” 13 years ago, agreeing to fill in for a friend as an assistant coach with the Toronto Red Wings AAA bantam team before taking a head coaching job with the GTHL club.
“I had a lot of ups and downs as a player,” he said. “The game brought me to a lot of great places and I met a lot of great people. And I also had some tougher, difficult moments as a player. When I ended off, I was happy to move on from the game. I had zero plans to coach.”
“But I fell in love with those kids with the Red Wings. I then kind of made my way up and here we are.”
“I think I just caught the bug. I love working with the players and giving back to the game. I absolutely love junior hockey and I think I have a knack for working with the kids at this age. I can adapt to players and I can get a dressing room pulling together. To me, it’s a lot of fun.”
“Coaching repaired a lot of things for me; some of those tough moments I had as a player. It repaired my relationship with the game. Coaching kind of fixed up some of those tough patches I had.”
His general manager is a big fan.
“This is a very well deserved award for Vince,” Blake Ricci told the OJHL. “Since he was announced as head coach heading into the 2019-2020 season, he and the rest of our coaching staff have instilled a culture based on accountability. Vince has set back-to-back-to-back win and point records with our organization and his attention to detail is uncanny. He has pushed me to become a better general manager. and not only do I view him as a great coach but also a lifelong friend.”
Bellissimo will be honoured along with the other OJHL award recipients at a ceremony before Game 1 of the OJHL Nutrafarms Championship Series in late April. The OJHL is announcing its 2022-23 award winners throughout the first three rounds of the playoffs.
TOMORROW: General Manager of the Year
About the OJHL – “League of Choice”
The Ontario Junior Hockey League is the largest Junior ‘A’ league operating under the auspices of the Canadian Junior Hockey League with 22 member clubs. A proud member of the Canadian Junior Hockey League and Ontario Hockey Association, the OJHL was originally named the Ontario Provincial Junior ‘A’ Hockey League and it was formed out of the Central Junior ‘B’ Hockey League in 1993-94. With a long and storied history of developing players for the next level, including U SPORTS, the NCAA, CHL, minor pro ranks and the NHL, the OJHL had more than 90 NCAA, U SPORTS, CHL and professional commitments in 2021-22 – including more than 25 NCAA Division I scholarships.
For more information on the Ontario Junior Hockey League, follow us on Instagram (@OJHLOfficial), Twitter (@OJHLOfficial) and Facebook (OJHLOfficial).
