Former Prince Albert Minto Kyle Schneider is ready to take the next step.
The 26-year-old Prince Albert product spent four seasons as an assistant coach with the La Ronge Ice Wolves, but when the next SJHL season starts he’ll be a head coach with the Kindersley Klippers.
“It’s something that I definitely didn’t think would happen this fast, but I’m very excited for it, and to work alongside of our general manager who was hired this off-season as well, Ryan Gibson,” Schneider said. “I think it’s going to be a great fit and I’m just excited to get things started.”
Schneider replaces Clayton Jardine in the head coaching role. Jardine is headed to Red Deer in the WHL, where he’s work as an assistant to former Prince Albert Raiders head coach Marc Habscheid.
The Klippers made the playoffs each of the last two seasons but were knocked out in the first round. Last season, that loss came at the hands of the eventual SJHL champion Melfort Mustangs.
Schneider said Jardine built a strong culture in Kindersley, and helped position the club for further success down the road.
“I think, obviously, every team’s goal should be to win and that’s going to be ours as well,” Schneider said when asked about the upcoming season. “Kindersley has a veteran group returning this year and with the prospects that we’ve recruited this spring and summer, I think we’re a very deep team.
“I think we’ve got a lot of experience. We added a bit of Western League experience to our lineup and there’s a lot of familiar faces who are going to be back in Kindersley.”
Schneider joined the La Ronge coaching staff after playing three seasons of junior hockey. He suited up for the Ice Wolves, Mustangs, and MJHL’s Selkirk Steelers during his Junior A career, and credits La Ronge head coach Kevin “Killer” Kaminiski for giving him his start in the coaching ranks.
“I owe Kevin a lot,” Schneider said. “Kevin was my mentor and a great friend. I honestly wouldn’t be in this spot had he not given me the opportunity to be his assistant coach.
“I learned virtually everything I know about coaching through him as it was my first experience behind a bench. Obviously I had great coaching in Prince Albert growing up and throughout my junior career as well but Kevin is definitely the person in hockey that I looked up to most. I appreciate all the lessons that I learned through him.”
Although it’s been several years since he suited up in a Mintos uniform, Schneider said he models his coaching style after former coaches Ken Morrison and Tim Leonard.
“Tim Leonard, playing under him, he ran some of the best practices in my hockey career,” Schneider said. “I think with some of Ken Morrison’s offensive outlooks, that’s stuff I’ve taken as well with me.”
Schneider played 76 games for the Mintos over three seasons, with the majority of those games coming in 2015-16 and 2016-17. His final season was his best one, where he posted three goals and 10 assists in 41 regular season games, then added a goal and two assists in the playoffs.
That Minto team featured future NHLer Braden Schneider, as well as future WHLers Kyrell Sopotyk (Kamloops), Alex Moar (Swift Current), Cael Zimmerman (Calgary), and Logan Barlage (Swift Current/Lethbridge/Medicine Hat).
“I still keep in touch with quite a few of my teammates from that team,” Schneider said. “We had a pretty special group with our young talent. I was an old third liner on that team, but it’s cool to stay in touch and see where everybody else’s hockey career went. Obviously the biggest one is Braden Schneider being an NHL defenceman with the Rangers. It’s just cool to stay in touch with guys and continue to follow each other’s careers, whether that’s in hockey or not in hockey.”
The Kindersley Klippers open the 2025-26 SJHL season on the road against the Battlefords North Stars on Friday, Sept. 19.
