Eagles Look to Build on Outstanding Season
Mar 17, 2026
By Christian Moreno
The Eagles picked up this season after a strong 2024-25 campaign, where they made it all the way to the AHL’s Pacific Division finals, where they lost to the eventual Calder Cup winners in the Abbotsford Canucks, 3-2 in a five-game series. After a record of 43-12-0-8 on the season, they had immense success along the way.
This season, the biggest change for the Eagles came in the form of a new head coach in Mark Letestu. Previously, Letestu was an assistant for four seasons for the Cleveland Monsters. In his first year as a head coach, Letestu has had quick success, posting a record of 35-15-4-4 in his first 58 games.
“I’ve probably gotten more things wrong than I have right,” said Letestu. “I try to lean on my staff, and I’ve been very fortunate to have a good staff. Excited to come to work and make mistakes and try to correct them as I go.”
Alongside Letestu, newly added assistant coaches Derek Army and Kim Weiss. Army previously coached in the ECHL as a head coach for the Wheeling Nailers for five seasons.
“Honestly, you try to just build relationships early, I try to empower them as much as possible, you know, giving them responsibilities, letting them run practices. I want them to feel like it’s their team, our team. We’re still working together, still finding things to disagree about, which I think is important. I don’t want everybody on the same page all the time, as far as opinions. But, when we do leave the coaches' room, we’re unified, and we do a good job of bringing multiple perspectives,” Letestu explained.
Not only has the new coaching staff made an immediate impact, but the new players for the Eagles have also been successful throughout this season.
A few of the new players, including Alex Barre-Boulet, who leads the team in points with 58 and assists with 39 through his first 57 games. One of the most effective aspects of Barre-Boulet’s game is on the man-advantage, as he owns 15 power-play points and is fourth on the team with five power-play goals.
The wealth has been equally spread out within the Eagles team, as they have six players with over 30 points, showing the depth and offensive production the team has been able to produce on a nightly basis.
This includes another newcomer in Tristen Nielsen, who is coming off a Calder Cup championship with the Abbotsford Canucks last season and has been another bright spot on this Eagles team. Nielsen is second on the team in goals with 22 and is sixth overall with 36 points.
“The turnover in the roster, we’ve had so many players come in and out with injuries. But I think everybody, staff included, has handled it really well. The guys have stepped up, and it’s been a lot of fun to see a lot of growth with some of our guys,” Letestu said.
The Eagles have battled at the top of the Pacific Division against the Ontario Reign and have been fighting for the top spot in the division. Through the first half of the season, the Eagles never dropped below third in the division, showing their dominance throughout the entire first half of the season.
“We’ve got to get better every single day, every practice, every game. If you lose, you've got to learn something, you've got to work hard and stay motivated. It’s a long road to get to the finish line, and there are a lot of things that have to go right. Taking care of ourselves, away from the rink too, so that’s a big part and sticking to the course and staying detail oriented,” Eales captain Jayson Megan said.
The expectations are high for the Eagles heading into the most important part of the season, and the importance is shown for an Eagles squad that is hungry for more wins and success.
“Continue to develop championship-winning habits, it’s something we’ve set out at the start of the year. It’s kind of our mission statement that we wanted to play and win the last game of the year,” Letestu said. “So, we’re still developing that. We’re still going through video, film, and discussions about how we want to play when we get to the playoffs. We’re still forming that identity, we’re getting close, but that’s the message is where we have to continue to get better as the season gets harder.”
With just over a dozen games remaining, the Eagles look to continue their dominance and finish the regular season better than a successful first half, and carve their way into the postseason, where the real games begin.
