Photo credit: Steve Dunsmoor

By Regan Bartel

Why head coach Kris Mallette was let go

‘This wasn’t an easy decision’ – Rockets GM Bruce Hamilton

Jan 13, 2025 | 8:00 AM

Bruce Hamilton isn’t afraid to make bold decisions when necessary. 

Whether acquiring a top-tier player or making a coaching change mid-season, Hamilton has repeatedly demonstrated that he’s willing to pull the trigger when needed. 

The latest example occurred Friday morning when Kris Mallette was informed that he would be relieved of his duties as head coach. This move came during a highly emotional week for Hamilton, who had already traded away his top two players, Andrew Cristall and Caden Price. At the start of the season, the 67-year-old Hamilton likely envisioned these two players as the foundation for a championship run. But with the team struggling near the bottom of the Western Conference and the 2026 Memorial Cup on the horizon, it became clear that changes were necessary—and they needed to happen quickly. 

“This wasn’t an easy decision,” Hamilton said in an interview with RocketFAN about the coaching change, which came during a week that also saw him and assistant GM Curtis Hamilton make four trades and acquire 11 draft picks to strengthen the team’s future. “He was with us for 11 years, including through the pandemic.” 

“For the team, and with the changes we’ve made, I really believe a new voice will give these guys a little bit of a spark.” 

GM Bruce Hamilton/AGM Curtis Hamilton

Things that make me go hmm...

Dec 03, 2024

Notes, one quote and anecdotes

Things that make me go hmm...

Oct 08, 2024

Notes, quotes and anecdotes

Things that make me go hmm...

Sep 13, 2024

Changing coaches mid-season is a familiar practice. Marcel Comeau parted ways with the team two months after coaching Canada at the 1996 World Junior Hockey Championships. Clint Malarchuk was let go mid-season when Marc Habscheid became available in 1999. Jason Smith was fired in October 2018 and replaced by Adam Foote, who was then dismissed in February 2020. 

“I don’t want to say there’s a ‘shelf life,’ but for a lot of coaches, after three or four years, a change is necessary because the messaging needs to evolve. This age group can be tough to manage. Kris did a good job communicating, but our game wasn’t changing, and that became a concern,” Hamilton explained. 

Coaches like Marc Habscheid, Jeff Truitt, Ryan Huska, and Dan Lambert chose to leave on their own terms before overstaying their welcome. Three of them are still coaching today, with Truitt leading the Prince Albert Raiders, while Huska and Lambert are part of the Calgary Flames coaching staff in the NHL. 

“I’m sure Kris will land somewhere else, and when he does, he’ll have learned something from this experience,” Hamilton added. “He might adjust his approach a little, but from what I saw, he didn’t lose the room.” 

Mallette’s coaching record in the WHL speaks for itself, with a 131-112-13-8 record over 264 games. He was named BC Division Coach of the Year in 2022 and most recently led Canada to a gold medal at the Hlinka-Gretzky Cup. He was even being considered for a spot on Canada’s World Junior team. 

“He inherited two fairly average teams, largely due to the impact of the cancelled Memorial Cup bid,” Hamilton acknowledged. “We spent a lot of assets to acquire players for that bid, and as a result, the next two years were tough. Andrew Cristall and Caden Price were the last major draft picks we had.” 

Mallette still managed to lead the team to 42 wins in the 2021-2022 season, one of only eight teams that year to accumulate over 90 points. However, after a challenging season last year and a slow start this year, Hamilton made the difficult decision to make a change. 

“He did a great job,” Hamilton said. “There are no hard feelings from my side. Kris fully understood that this decision wasn’t personal. He truly cares about the players and wants the best for them.” 

In a move that’s rare in such situations, Mallette was given the opportunity to address the team after being informed of the change. 

“If we were going to make a change, it was better to do it now, before we get back into action,” Hamilton explained. “We were so busy dealing with trades this week that there wasn’t time to address this sooner. It’s important to let Derrick [Assistant Coach Derrick Martin] take control of this new group and deliver his message.” 

Martin, who joined the team in August after coaching the AJHL’s Camrose Kodiaks, will take over on an interim basis through the end of the season. 

“He’ll need a couple of weeks to get the team to understand his approach,” Hamilton said. “But we need to get back in the race, with key games against Vancouver and Kamloops coming up.” 

“I thought it was time to give Derrick an opportunity,” Hamilton added. “We always envisioned him eventually replacing Kris when we hired him.”