Our Team

Dean Jackson - President

Jackson had a stellar four-year playing career at Elmira College from 1999-2003. He was named the ECAC West Rookie of the Year in 1999, earned the ECAC West All-Conference Player and ECAC West Tournament Most Outstanding Player in 2003,  and was a member of the 100 Point Club. Following his career at Elmira, Jackson played four seasons of professional hockey, skating for the Elmira Jackals of the United Hockey League and the Fayetteville Fireantz  and Richmond Renegades of the Southern Professional Hockey League.
Dean just concluded his 15 year collegiate coaching career.  He just spend the last five years at Cornell University. In his first season as a member of the Big Red’s coaching staff, Cornell advanced to the ECAC Hockey Semifinal and finished with the #7 spot in both of the the majorcollege hockey polls (USCHO and USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine). During the 2018-19 season, the Big Red closed the season in the NCAA Frozen Four with a #4 spot in the USCHO.com Poll.  Following the shortened 2019-20 season (due to aiding in the efforts to slow the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, the NCAA Tournament was cancelled), the Cornell women finished ranked #1 in both major college hockey polls. The 2019-20 season saw the first ever team to go undefeated in regular-season league play with the highest number of league points (41) since 2010. 

Prior to his appointment at Cornell, Jackson spent a year at Penn State University as an Assistant as well as Interim Head Coach.

Jackson was the Head Coach for four years at Elmira College.  He amassed an overall record of 94-19-4. He became the fastest coach to record 50 wins in program history, reaching that mark in just 63 games. After taking over the Soaring Eagles in 2012-13, Jackson led the program to its third NCAA Division III Championship and became the first women’s ice hockey coach, in any division, to lead a team to a national championship without a single All-American selection.
Jackson went on to lead the program to four straight NCAA Tournament appearances, making a return to the NCAA championship during the 2014-15 season. While at Elmira, Jackson was named the 2015 American Hockey Coaches Association DIII National Coach of the Year and ECAC West Conference Coach of the Year, the 2013 D3Hockey.com National Coach of the Year and CaptainU National Coach of the Year, and was an AHCA National Coach of the Year Finalist in 2016 and 2013.

Jackson began his coaching career at his alma mater, Elmira College and was an assistant men’s hockey coach from 2007-12, guiding the Soaring Eagles to five consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances and one trip to the NCAA Frozen Four in 2008.

Marlène Boissonnault - Title

Marlène graduated with a Pre-Med Bachelor of Science degree from Cornell University in 2019 and played with the Big Red Women’s Ice Hockey team. Over the course of her 4 years with the NCAA, Marlène finished with 56 wins, 2nd highest total in the university’s history, and recorded 15 shutouts, 3rd most in Cornell history. Over the course of her career at Cornell, Marlène would be honored 1st and 2nd Team all-Ivy league honors, would become a 2-time Ivy League champion, an ECAC regular-season champion, and would attend the Frozen Four in 2019. At the end of her Cornell career, Marlène won Top Cornell Senior Female Athletes honors. She has represented the province of New Brunswick on multiple occasions as well as the Atlantic provinces and has competed at the Canada Winter Games. Marlène has also been a member of the Hockey Canada program since 2014, having represented Canada at the U18 and U22 level, and currently making her way up to the Senior level. Marlène is now a professional hockey player as a member of the PWHPA, representing Team Scotiabank (Calgary, AB).

 Marlène’s knowledge and depth in the understanding of the goaltending game is outstanding. Marlène has been described as a very athletic, calm yet aggressive, and tenacious goaltender. Her fundamentals and edgework are superior. Her skating skills as a goaltender are undoubtedly one of her greatest strengths making her a truly elite goaltender. Marlène is a firm believer that video analysis is a key component to a goalie’s development. 

 Throughout her college career, Marlène has coached young goaltenders and has since then moved on to coaching goaltenders of all ages (beginners to university levels) and raising their games to the next level as a coach for Top Prospects Goaltending in Calgary, where she currently resides. While in Calgary, Marlène has been goalie coaching at the Edge School, Olds College, Hockey Alberta, alongside many other teams.

Kristin O’Neill - Title

O’Neill grew up playing hockey in the Greater Toronto Area. In 2013, she won the Lower Lakes Female Hockey League championship with the Stoney Creek Sabres and also took home a silver medal with Ontario Blue at the 2013 National Women’s Under-18 Championship.

She continued to have success with Stoney Creek in the 2014-15 season, winning the Provincial Women’s Hockey League championship and finishing second at the Ontario Women’s Hockey Association provincials (Intermediate AA). She was named captain of the Sabres the following year and led the team in goals, assists and points.

O’Neill also picked up a silver medal with Ontario at the 2015 Canada Winter Games, and she followed that up with gold while representing Ontario Red at the 2015 National Women’s Under-18 Championship, netting a goal in the semifinal.

That same year, O’Neill won silver with Canada’s under-18 team at the 2015 IIHF U18 Women’s World Championship. She and the team would finish second again in the 2016 edition of the tournament. 

O’Neill started playing for Cornell in 2016 and said one of the reasons she chose the school was the Hockey Canada connections, with players like Brianne Jenner and Rebecca Johnston among the alumni.

In her first season, she was named Ivy League Rookie of the Year and was second on the team in scoring, helping lead the Big Red to the quarter-finals of the NCAA tournament.

As a sophomore, she led Cornell in goals (20), assists (21), and points (41). She earned Ivy League Player of the Year honors and was both an Ivy League and ECAC First Team All-Star. She also became just the third sophomore to be a captain in the program’s history.

O’Neill once again led the Big Red in scoring in her third season with 38 points in 33 games, and she finished her career at Cornell in the top 10 for several statistical categories, including most shorthanded goals (10), 10th-most points (145), and third-most shots (546).

After leaving Cornell, O’Neill joined Montreal’s Team Bauer in the PWHPA. During this year’s Dream Gap Tour showcase in Calgary, she scored her first professional goal on May 25 against Team Scotiabank. She would add a second goal en route to her team winning the championship game.

During her collegiate years, O’Neill spent time with the Canadian development team, winning silver at the 2017 Nations Cup. She made her senior team debut at the 2018 4 Nations Cup, recording two assists and picking up a silver medal.

She also featured for Canada in the two-game series against the Americans in 2019.

Jaime Bourbonnais - Title

One of Canada’s brightest young stars on the blue line, Jaime Bourbonnais may only have a handful of games under her belt with the Canadian national team, but her talent has been on display for years. 

Bourbonnais grew up playing for Mississauga in the Greater Toronto Hockey League, winning the GTHL championship three years in a row from 2009 to 2011, including with the Peewee AA boys team in 2011. 

Bourbonnais then moved to the Oakville Hornets in the Provincial Women’s Hockey League (PWHL). In 2015, she won gold with the Hornets at the Ontario Women’s Hockey Association (OWHA) provincials (intermediate AA), as well as bronze at the PWHL championship.  A year later, she medalled again, taking home silver at the OWHA provincials. 

While playing for Ontario, Bourbonnais won silver at the 2015 Canada Winter Games in Prince George, B.C.  That same year, she and Ontario Red took home gold at the National Women’s Under-18 Championship, and Bourbonnais also earned Top Defenceman honours.  After making her debut with Canada’s under-18 team in 2015, Bourbonnais earned silver with the squad at the 2016 IIHF Under-18 Women’s World Championship in St. Catharines, Ont.  She picked up two goals in the tournament, including a marker in the gold-medal game, which the Americans won 3-2 in overtime. 

Bourbonnais then chose Cornell University for her collegiate team, citing the number of Canadians who had played for the Big Red, including Laura Fortino, Rebecca Johnston and Jill Saulnier, as a major motivation.  In her first season, she was named to the ECAC All-Rookie team and helped Cornell reach the quarter-finals of the NCAA tournament. The following year, she led all Big Red defencemen in scoring and was named to the Ivy League First All-Star Team.

But Bourbonnais really started to find success in her final two years at Cornell. In the 2018-19 season, she ranked third among NCAA defencemen in points per game (0.94), won ECAC Defenceman of the Year, and helped Cornell reach the Frozen Four. 

In her senior year, Bourbonnais raised her points per game to 1.24, second most in the NCAA among defencemen. She finished tied for the team lead with 41 points, won ECAC Defenceman of the Year once again, and was a top-10 finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Award, given annually to the best collegiate women’s hockey player. 

While at Cornell, Bourbonnais also spent time with Canada’s development team, winning silver with the squad at the 2017 Nations Cup, and she also captained the team for a three-game series against the United States in 2019. 

She made her debut with the senior squad at the 2018 Four Nations Cup and scored her first goal with the national team in the gold-medal match, which Canada lost 5-2 to the Americans. The following year, she made her women’s worlds debut at the 2019 IIHF Women’s World Championship, picking up a goal in Canada’s 7-0 win over Russia in the bronze-medal match. 

Bourbonnais was named to the roster for the 2020 women’s worlds that was cancelled due to COVID-19. She did feature in two of the games in the Rivalry Series against the Americans at the end of the year, picking up an assist. 

After college, Bourbonnais elected to join the PWHPA, which was formed in 2019 in an effort to create a viable women’s professional hockey league in North America. 

She currently plays for Team Bauer in the Montreal region of the PWHPA. During this year’s Dream Gap Tour in Calgary, she recorded two assists in five games and helped her team win the championship game.

Micah Zandee-Hart - Title

Micah Zandee-Hart made her Olympic debut at Beijing 2022 where she recorded four assists as Canada won the gold medal.

Zandee-Hart became the first hockey player from Vancouver Island to play on the National Women’s Team when she got into a pair of games against the United States in December 2016. Zandee-Hart’s first experience with the national team program was at a pair of IIHF U18 Women’s World Championships. She won a gold medal in 2014 and was captain of the 2015 team that won silver. At the latter she was named one of Canada’s top three players of the tournament and was selected to the Media All-Star team. She then advanced to the U22 national development team and represented Canada at the 2016 and 2017 Nations Cup tournaments, winning gold and silver, respectively.

Zandee-Hart was among the last players to be cut from the centralization roster ahead of PyeongChang 2018. It was later in 2018 that she competed in her first major tournament with the national team as she helped Canada to silver at the Four Nations Cup. She made her debut at the IIHF Women’s World Championship in 2019, picking up a pair of assists en route to a bronze medal. She was also named to Canada’s roster for the 2020 World Championship which was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Back with the national team in 2021, Zandee-Hart fractured a thumb during a January training camp while blocking a shot. Just as she was getting back into game shape, a shoulder injury in March would require surgery, keeping her out of the 2021 World Championship. Once fully recovered, Zandee-Hart was back for Olympic centralization and competed in Rivalry Series games against the United States in December. 

Zandee-Hart played collegiately at Cornell University where she served as co-captain in her last three seasons, becoming just the second sophomore to wear the ‘C’. She was named to the ECAC All-Rookie team in 2016 and to the All-ECAC and All-Ivy First Teams in 2017. After redshirting in 2018 while centralized with the Olympic team, she returned to East Hill in 2019, leading the team in blocks and points by a defenceman. She was named to the All-Ivy second team and All-ECAC and All-USCHO third teams for her efforts. As a senior in 2020 she led the Big Red to their first ever number one national ranking. They won the Ivy League Championship, but the NCAA Championships were cancelled due to the pandemic. Zandee-Hart was a nominee for the Patty Kazmaier Award, an All-Ivy and All-ECAC Second Team selection, and named to the third team All-USCHO. She finished her university career as Cornell’s all-time leader in blocked shots with 225 and was also an All-Ivy Academic Team pick in her last two seasons.

After graduating, Zandee-Hart joined the PWHPA, playing for the Calgary-based team during the 2021 Dream Gap Tour.

Jason Evans - Title

Jason Evans has been coaching ice hockey for over 20 years and earned his Level 5 Coaching Certification from USA Hockey in 2004.  He has coached High School, National Bound Travel but the majority of his experience has been at the collegiate level.

He has departed three programs as their all-time leader in wins. He has also been named conference Coach of the Year three times and acknowledged as a finalist five additional times including twice in the ECAC-West (women’s). 

In his 20+ years, Jason is proud to have developed all-conference and all-academic athletes from high school through NCAA Division III. 

Dr. Katie Gaskin - Title

Dr Katie Gaskin is a Chiropractor, a strength and conditioning coach, and a former professional hockey player. Having reached the pinnacle of her sport, she understands that physical preparation, maintenance and recovery are paramount for top athletic performance. She is an advocate for active care for individuals of all ages, patient education to encourage long-term wellness, and regular chiropractic care to keep up with the bumps & bruises that are an inevitable part of life! Dr. Katie has additional certifications in athletic movement screening, instrument-assisted soft tissue therapy, and post-concussion management.

After playing junior hockey in the Greater Toronto area and within Canada’s National Development Program, Dr. Katie was offered a full athletic scholarship to an NCAA Division I school, Wayne State University, in Michigan. In her 3rd-year, Dr Katie led her team to an NCAA National Championship title as team captain. She graduated Magna Cum Laude with a degree in Biology and minor focus in Exercise & Sport Science.

After completing her undergraduate degree, Dr Katie was accepted to the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College (CMCC) in Toronto. She simultaneously began her professional hockey career after being drafted 12th overall by the Canadian Women’s Hockey League (CWHL) team, the Toronto Furies. She would go on to play four seasons in the CWHL and graduate from CMCC earning her Doctor of Chiropractic degree with Cum Laude Honours.

Throughout her NCAA and professional career, Dr Katie spearheaded community outreach and youth development programs for students and athletes of all levels. This included working as a powerskating and skills instructor for youth hockey teams in the Toronto area, leading physical activity and nutrition workshops at schools and community events, and volunteering as a sideline therapist for community hockey and soccer tournaments. Dr Katie’s strong community presence has continued after moving to Vancouver, as she is a coach within the Vancouver Female Ice Hockey Association and a mental performance coach for youth athletes of various sports in the Lower Mainland.

Due to her personal injury experience as an athlete, Dr Katie has a special interest in concussion rehabilitation. She has earned the Complete Concussion Management Practitioner designation through additional certifications in post-concussion management and has a thorough understanding of the intricacy required to perform a multifaceted concussion assessment. Her individualized concussion rehabilitation protocols are based on restoring specific impairments through cognitive, visuomotor and balance retraining, along with manual therapies to address associated head and neck pain.

When she’s not in the clinic or at the hockey rink, Dr Katie enjoys running with her dog, CrossFit, rowing, cooking, painting, and immersing herself into every new fitness-related opportunity she can find!

 Billy Larkin - Title

Billy was a member of the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex where he was the Director of Sports Performance. Prior to coming to the Penguins, he was at the University of Maine where he was a Sports Performance Coach for Hockey, Baseball, Softball, Football as well as a full-time member of the Women’s Ice Hockey Coaching staff. Under his training, the Women’s Ice Hockey program set records for wins, playoff victories, and playoff series victory. He is accompanied in his move to the area, by his wife Mandy and their four children: Maverick (6) Billy (5) Bear (3) Murphy (2) with a baby expected in the Spring of 2021.

Billy has made a name for himself in the last years 12 years nationally, in the area of high-performance training with professional (MLB, NHL, NFL), amateur athletes, tactical/ military training, injury rehabilitation, and weight loss.

Prior to arriving at Maine, Coach Larkins co-owned and operated LM Precision Training, with locations in the greater Chicagoland area. As director of Sports Performance, he programmed and implemented strength and conditioning programs, speed and agility protocols, nutritional assessment for clients ranging from DEA agents and Olympic athletes to prenatal and post-operation patrons. 

Billy has assisted athletes in receiving division 1 scholarships in the following sports: Men & Women Hockey, Field Hockey, Men and Women’s Basketball, Football, Men and Women’s Lacrosse, Men and Women’s Soccer, Women’s Volleyball, Gymnastics, Baseball, Softball, Crew.