COACHES

8U (Mites)

Jon Quick
Paige Asbell
George Caliendo

10U BB (Squirts)

George Caliendo
Kyung Min

12U B (PeeWees)

Tim Nelson

12U A (PeeWees)

Mark Smith
Paul Switenki

14U B (Bantams)

David Duble

14U A (Bantams)

Michelle Chee

16U A

Natham Tam
Daro Serizawa

High School

Brady Anderson

Goalie Coach

Trevor Waechter

Bios

Allen Ball

George Caliendo

Coach George has been coaching youth hockey for over 30 years. In New York City, he was head coach of the St. Bernard’s School ice hockey team from 1988 through 1999. During that time, he was also a coach, teacher, tutor and mentor for the Ice Hockey In Harlem community hockey program. While living in Los Angeles, he coached in-house hockey at the LA Kings practice center. He has been a coach with the San Francisco Sabercats since 2004, and has coached every age group from 6u/8u through Golden State 18AA. Along with Coach Casey O'Sullivan, he is currently Co-Director of Hockey Operations.

Coach George played for the Columbia University hockey team in college and the Columbia Business School hockey team while in graduate school.

Michelle Chee

Michelle started coaching peewee hockey for San Francisco Sabercats during 2003-2004 season, when she was still a teenager and playing as member for the midget team. After two years, she moved to the east coast to attend college and volunteered as a "Learn to Skate" coach when time permitted. The "Learn to Skate" program was focused on local Hartford-area students and came during their school PE periods to learn how to skate.

Following graduation, she moved abroad to Asia. After some time away from the ice rink, she surprisingly found a small but passionate hockey community in Hong Kong. She began coaching and organizing the youth hockey league, which served about 400 players ages 4-18. She was fortunate enough to get the opportunity to coach the select teams, which played tournaments in Taiwan, Japan, and other locations in China.

She stepped away from coaching for a couple of years after moving back to the United States but now she's back as an assistant coach for the squirt and bantam teams here in San Francisco. Go Sabercats!

Jeff Dardis

Jeff began playing hockey in Ohio when he was 8 years old and after discovering his passion for the sport, spent his youth playing AAA Travel hockey. Shortly thereafter Jeff joined the Mentor Junior Cardinals for two seasons of playing in an even more competitive travel league before moving on to play at his local high school. During college he took a 4 year hiatus from hockey, although, after graduating realized that he couldn't stay away so he earned his Level 3 coaching certification and began coaching youth hockey in Charleston, SC. Moving to California in 2011 provided the opportunity to find a new hockey program to continue coaching with, leading Jeff to the San Francisco Sabercats.

David Duble

Coach David Duble grew up in North Haven, Connecticut tagging along to rinks with two older brothers and a dedicated hockey coach father at a very young age. He began playing youth hockey at age 7 and traveled throughout the New England and Mid-Atlantic states representing the Greater New Haven Youth Hockey Association from squirts through midgets, winning two Connecticut state championships along the way. Dave played two years of high school hockey at North Haven High School, picking up another state championship, and two years at Choate School. After playing three years of junior varsity hockey at St. Lawrence University and graduating in 1985, Dave moved west to California. Now in his second year of coaching with the Sabercats, Dave still plays organized hockey while raising two kids, Antonia and Quinby, with his wife Victoria.

Patrick Fortier

Patrick learned to play ice hockey in Southern California at the Ontario Ice Skating Center, starting at age 13. He played 1 year of Bantams and 3 years of Midgets for the Ontario Jets. Patrick moved to upstate New York and played two years of Junior College Hockey at Clinton Community College in Plattsburgh and at Mohawk Valley Community College in Utica. He then transferred to the University of Kentucky and played 3 years of Club Hockey for the Wildcats. While at the University of Kentucky, his team made it to the ACHA Division II National Finals twice; and played in the Nationals Championship Game in 1992. Patrick was alternate Captain of the Team in 1993/94. After graduating from the University of Kentucky in 1994, he has continued to enjoy playing hockey and has played in men’s leagues in Detroit, Michigan, Oakland and San Francisco, CA. Patrick is a certified level 2 USA Hockey Coach and enjoys sharing his passion for the game of hockey by coaching kids.

Charles Hixon

Started playing hockey when he was 8 at an in house league in Culver City, Los Angeles. At the age of 12 he joined his first club in Burbank called the Golden Bears. At 14 he stopped playing club bantam AA and joined the high school varsity league for Venice High School. Upon graduating from high school he remained involved with the Venice High School hockey program as an assistant coach for 2 years. He is very excited to continue his coaching career with SF Sabercats.

Chris Jones

Peter Korcsinszky

Coach Peter Korcsinszky's love for ice hockey originates from his father, who is a true fanatic of the sport. Growing up watching his father, who has been an active member of the Hungarian Ice Hockey Federation and the President of the local hockey club over the past 20 years, left no chance for him to avoid his fate: becoming a hockey player.

He got his first pair of skates at the age of 5 and has never abandoned them. He played youth travel hockey up to his teenage years, when he was also selected for the Under-16 National Team of Hungary. Shortly after, due to injuries, he decided to turn the focus on his education, ultimately earning a law degree. Throughout he stayed close to the sport, as he started coaching his hometown’s Mite, Squirt and PeeWee teams and was running the International Ice Hockey Federation's “Learn to Play” program.

In 2004, after moving to San Francisco, he connected with local hockey programs and has served as a coach and power skating instructor for the Sabercats In-House, Mite, Squirt, and PeeWee programs at YBISC. He also oversees the coaching staff within the Sabercats organization as the Directory of Coaches.

It’s been well over a decade since he started teaching youngsters the fundamentals of ice hockey, while incorporating solid work ethics and uncompromising team spirit, and since has never forgotten the ultimate reason that made him fell in love with the sport: HOCKEY is FUN!

Zach McCoy

Coach Zach hails from the great state of Indiana. Home to the Boilermakers, rows of corn and John Cougar. He started skating around three years old and came up playing with the Irish Rover AA travel hockey program through Bantams. He played four years of Varsity High School hockey and also played midgets for Team Michiana, the regional All Star team. He played his college hockey for Purdue University.

Coach Zach spent his summers playing baseball and heading to summer hockey camps in Nelson, B.C and Miami of Ohio. Coach Zach takes pride in coaching the future of the game, he still looks up to his youth coaches that taught him the amazing game of hockey along with invaluable life lessons.

Don Monson

Don grew up in the State of Hockey, Minnesota, playing on ponds and outdoor rinks from an early age. He played youth hockey for his community and eventually decided on becoming the goalie. Don went on to play at Hill-Murray and won the 1991 Minnesota State High School Hockey Championship. After a brief attempt to play Division I hockey at Merrimack College, Don hung up the skates for 15 years until rediscovering a love of the game through his kids.

Don started coaching hockey while living in London and completed his IIHF Level 2 certification. Upon moving back to San Francisco, Don has earned his USA Hockey Level 3 coaching credentials and serves as a Sabercats assistant coach focused on developing our goalies.

Tim Nelson

Tim Nelson started skating at the age of eight in Southern California. He played youth hockey at his local club (Burbank) until he aged out at 18 playing tier hockey. At the age of 16 he started assisting in the hockey skating school program at Pasadena. In 2000 he took over the skating school classes and started giving power skating lessons. He has been coaching nonstop ever since. He has been head coach at the Mite, Squirt and PeeWee levels. Tim has his level 4 USA Hockey certification.  His coaching philosophy for the past 17 years is to help the players fall in love with the game while they learn the satisfaction that comes from hard work.

Paul Scott

Coach Paul has been involved with the Sabercats organization for almost a decade. He first began helping out Coach George as an assistant coach in 2011 at the midget and high school levels. Most recently, he assisted Coaches Rick and Don with the Sabercats' legendary Squirt B team that went from 0-20 one year to tournament champions the next.

Coach Paul played pond hockey as a kid growing up in Canada, took a break for about a decade, then picked up the game again in his twenties, quickly remembering all he had learned about the clutch and grab. Paul continues to play adult hockey today at Yerba Buena, fruitlessly trying to keep up with guys half his age, but having a good time doing it.

Don Sharpe

Don grew up in the Philadelphia area and when the Flyers won two Stanley Cups in the ‘70s he became a hockey devotee along with all the kids in the neighborhood. He played youth hockey for the Jr. Flyers and travelled the northeast and Canada including participation in two national championship tournaments. In high school Don was invited to train at the US Olympic Training and Development Center in Colorado Springs, and from there was recruited to the University of Maine. Things change, jobs happen, and all of a sudden Don finds himself wanting to pass along the great lessons that hockey provides - sportsmanship, teamwork, grittiness, pride in winning/losing, skill development, and even locker room culture - to his two young boys now in the Sabercats program.

Don has been coaching other sports such as soccer, baseball, and lacrosse in Marin County, but feels most comfortable coaching on the ice. He can’t wait to help the team parents build great individuals and (if they want to be) great hockey players.

Dmitry Shikhvarg

Robert Tenore

Robert was born and raised in San Jose, California and
started playing hockey (ice and roller) at age 13, taking on the goaltender position, and has been a player/coach ever since. Robert moved to Pensacola, Florida in 2000 to pursue professional hockey. That year he was co-counselor of a local Pensacola goalie camp with Scott Lagrande (1988 Phi. Flyers draft pick and Pensacola Ice Pilots starting goalie) before being invited to Pensacola Ice Pilots training camp (ECHL) summer 2001, although injury ended Roberts professional ambitions.

Since returning to San Jose in 2002, Robert has continued playing competitive hockey and coaching goaltenders on a 1:1 consultant basis. He started coaching as part of a team/club in 2009 as a goalie coach/assistant coach for two years before taking a head coaching position from 2011 until 2015.

Mike Tulini

Coach Mike grew up around Chicago and first laced up the skates at the age of 5 to keep up with his older brother. He developed his skills playing for the club at his local rink, from mites through midgets. After high school, Mike pursued his degree at The University of Kansas, and suited up to play for the Jayhawk club hockey team. By senior year, Mike was voted in as President of the self governing club, and considers those years sporting his school’s logo as some of his most enjoyable years playing the game.

In 2012, Mike moved out to California and his passion for hockey led him to stick with the game in a coaching capacity for the first time.  Coach Mike is a USA Hockey Level 4 certified coach who believes that youth hockey is all about working hard and having fun.

Brad Young

Brad grew up in Northern Ontario, learning to skate as soon as he could walk. From there it was endless amounts of outdoor rink hockey and playing league hockey as well. Although Brad played Junior hockey, the peak of his hockey career came in 1976 when his small town team won the International Silver Stick tournament, and the little silver stick he won has now been passed down to his son. Brad likes to pass on the experience that hockey can provide to kids that he has coached over the last 5 years.  The camaraderie, teamwork, work ethic and endless fun that hockey brings are important life lessons that any kid who laces up the skates can experience.