The Brooks Bandits have made some changes to their operations staff.
Late last month, the BCHL club announced that Dakota Mason had been promoted to head coach. He is replacing Ryan Papaioannou, who accepted a position as head coach of the ECHL's Wheeling Nailers, which serves as a farm team for the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Mason is now joined alongside Keven Sajinovic and Cole McCaig as assistant coaches.
“Dakota is deserving of this opportunity and has spent four years as a player and coach with the organization. We had significant interest in the position, but ultimately my recommendation to the board of directors was to approach this from an internal standpoint with continuity for our players," said Papaioannou. "I have faith in Dakota’s abilities as a coach, and he does a great job building relationships with the players and staff.”
Mason will serve as the eighth head coach in the team's history, with Papaioannou first taking up the role in 2009. Mason was a player with the Bandits himself, winning to AJHL championships and the 2013 national championship.
"He was hired by the Bandits in the summer of 2023 as Assistant Coach, and joined the team for the U20 Super Challenge in Sweden, which the Bandits won," wrote the Bandits. "During Mason’s two seasons as Assistant, the Bandits had the number-one ranked penalty kill in both the AJHL and BCHL."
In the 2024-25 season, the Bandits finished with a 40-10-2 record. They were undefeated in the playoffs and captured the Fred Page Cup in May.
Wayne Labrie has also been promoted to director of hockey operations with the team.
The Bandits have their home opener against Okotoks set for Sept. 20.