We officially welcome Hockey Director, Tim Benz, to his first Fall Season with the Northwest Chargers. Tim comes to the organization with an impressive hockey background spanning more than twenty years as an athlete, coach and director. Tim has held various director, coaching and player development roles at Wilmette Hockey Association, Loyola Academy, Glenview Stars, Glenbrook South, Glenbrook Girls, Delaney Hockey, and Ultimate Athlete. In addition to his role with the Chargers, Tim also serves as Hockey Director and Varsity Head Coach with the Saint Viator Lions. Tim is a recognized leader within the hockey community and we are excited to have him leading the Northwest Chargers organization for the 2022/23 season and many more seasons to come.

Wayne Brown is a native of Abbotsford, BC, Canada. He started skating when he was only 3 years old and grew up playing street hockey and on rinks in Canada. Wayne had the privilege of receiving early training from renowned instructors such as Marv Waller (2x BC Hockey Development Award in Coaching), Dwayne Lowdermilk (NHL Alum), and Power Skating Pioneer Laura Stamm. After playing minor hockey for the AAA Abbotsford Hawks and spending three years in the BC Junior Hockey League, Wayne moved to the USA to play for the NCAA Division III, St. Norbert College Green Knights. He graduated in 2002 with a degree in Business Administration.

Wayne Brown found his passion for coaching and began as a volunteer assistant coach for various Bantam AA and Squirt AA hockey teams. This led him to spend four years mentoring and skills training over 2600 private and semi-private lessons at Diamond Hockey. From 2017 to 2020, Wayne was the lead skating and skills coach for the Winnetka Warriors, Jr. Warriors, and WarHawks hockey clubs. In 2020, Wayne joined the Northwest Chargers as the program's Hockey Skills Director, providing over 1,000 small-group and large-group skills training sessions for players aged 6-14. 

When Wayne is not at the rink, you can find him spending time with his family, including his wife Tiffany, daughter Callie, and son Joey. 

What started in 1992 as Great Saves Goalie School has developed into a highly established goaltending academy. Our clients come from across the United States and Canada for our expert services.  Over the years, we have had the pleasure of coaching numerous pro goaltenders including Al Montoya, Mike Zacharias, Rob Madore, Ty Conklin, Richard Bachman, and Gerald Coleman.

Good As Gould Goalie School believes in allowing goaltenders to develop and improve their own style of goaltending. We also believe that while each goaltender is unique in his or her technique, each one also has a universal need for tactical development, concentration, strength, flexibility, and control of game situations. The school strives to combine a broad development of all goalies' knowledge of the game with a focused enhancement of each goalie's particular technique. This goal is achieved by providing a balanced curriculum of off-ice training, classroom instruction, on-ice training, and video analysis with the best teachers available. We feel that goaltenders learn best in small groups, as they receive more time with our staff. Because of this, we feature a 3:1 student-to-instructor ratio for beginners and a 2:1 ratio for more dedicated goaltenders. 

Peppi Laboy, Jr. was born and raised in Chicago and started skating at the age of 8. He played various sports growing up, such as hockey and football during the winter and baseball and swimming in the summer. McFetridge Sports Center was where Peppi started playing, and he went on to play High School Hockey at Niles West.

Peppi has been coaching for many years and has focused on hockey since 2015. He has coached Mites through Bantam-aged players and is proud to be coaching the Northwest Chargers. In addition, he is the Future Chargers Director, offering Learn to Skate, Pre-Hockey, In-House Mite League, and Little Blackhawks programming for kids aged 3-8 who are just starting with the game of hockey.

Peppi's primary goal as a coach is to promote skill development, personal growth, and enjoyment throughout his practices. To achieve these goals, he has conducted private skating sessions and small group training suitable for children of all ages and skill levels. He has found no greater satisfaction than seeing his players develop and love the game even more.

Apart from hockey, Peppi spends his time as a Youth Minister. This role has allowed him to express his love for God and demonstrate what genuine love and compassion for others look like. He has even been able to combine his passions for God and hockey by coaching for Hockey Ministries International (HMI), Youth Bible camps, and similar programs.

Peppi's life revolves around three main passions, namely God, his family, and hockey.