Big changes in Blazerville

When the puck drops at Interior Savings Centre on Friday for the Kamloops Blazers and the visiting Kootenay Ice, it will be a new-look team on the home bench.

And, general manager Craig Bonner no doubt hopes, maybe the team's on-ice performance will begin to change, too.

Bonner has been busy the last few days, making no less than four moves in a 24-hour period between Sunday and Monday afternoon.

Perhaps the most significant move came Monday morning, when the Blazers announced the hiring of head coach Guy Charron.

"He brings a real veteran presence to our coaching staff," Bonner told KTW after the announcement.

"He's a guy that, I think, his resume speaks for itself."

Charron brings with him to Kamloops almost two decades of coaching experience, having worked most recently as an assistant coach with the NHL's Florida Panthers between 2005 and 2008.

He has been on the coaching staff of the Calgary Flames, Montreal Canadiens, New York Islanders and Anaheim Ducks, as well, in addition to multiple stops in other minor-professional and junior leagues.

Of note to Bonner, Charron, 60, spent five years in the late-1980s and early-1990s working within Hockey Canada, as an assistant coach on the men's national team and head coach of the national junior team that won gold in 1990.

"His presence and his experience was something that is very necessary for what we need as a group right now," Bonner said.

"He's a guy who can make our guys better hockey players."

In addition to the new head coach, Bonner also acquired a new goalie and a new defenceman.

Charron said he's excited to get to work with the Blue and Orange, despite the flux the organization appears to be in.

"The things they are doing system-wise, they're the right things," he said, referencing the work of interim head coach Scott Ferguson and assistant Geoff Smith, both of whom will remain behind the bench as assistant coaches.

"It's just a matter of having the players execute."

Charron said there's one area he'd like to focus on.

"The goal scoring seems to be good, and the power play is statistically good," he said.

"But it stood out that the goals against are way too high — four goals a game or more. I don't think you can be very successful when you do that."

The Blazers hope to shore up the netminding issues with the addition of Kurtis Mucha, a 20-year-old goalie acquired Sunday from the Portland Winterhawks in exchange for a fourth-round pick in next spring's bantam draft.

"We're excited to acquire Kurtis," Bonner said.

"He's a real solid goalie and he's a real solid person."

Mucha had been with the Winterhawks since the 2004-2005 season, when he saw limited action as a 15-year-old. Over the last four years, though, he was the team's top goalie, and his 225 games played are the most among all active WHL netminders.

"We felt the price was fair," Bonner said.

"Whenever you get an opportunity to upgrade your team in a position like that, you're going to do it."

The addition of Mucha forced Bonner to place Justin Leclerc on waivers.

"That's the business of the game," he said.

"When you bring in a 20-year-old, you'll have to get rid of a 20-year-old."

Mucha's 3.13 goals-against average in 16 games for Portland this year is an improvement on Leclerc's 4.37, but a lot of the Blazers goaltending woes can be traced back to their problems on the blue line.

To remedy that, Bonner made a trade for another 20-year-old, defenceman Ryan Funk, sending 18-year-old forward Brett Lyon to the Vancouver Giants in exchange.

To make room for another overage player, Bonner shipped under-achieving D-man Giffen Nyren to the Calgary Hitmen in exchange for a future draft pick.

"Giff's a different type of player," Bonner said.

"He's what I call a riverboat gambler. We're hoping Funk can bring some stability to the back end.

"Between him and Mucha coming in, we think that will help."

Mucha was slated to begin practising with the Blazers on Tuesday, and Charron was on the ice for Monday's practice.

Funk is expected to join the team by the middle of the week.