A retired fire chief with decades of experience as a junior hockey player, coach, and hockey scout, has been named the Vancouver Giants new Director of Player Personnel
Giants announced Greg Batters appointment Monday, Aug. 26.
Batters worked in junior hockey for nearly 30 years, most recently as the head Alberta scout for the Western Hockey League鈥檚 Spokane Chiefs, whom he had scouted for since 2019.
He was previously a scout for the Kamloops Blazers from 1995-2019.
The 57-year-old was a firefighter for the city of Victoria for 28 years, retiring as a Battalion Chief in 2021.
Batters also played the game. From 1984-88 in the WHL, mostly for his hometown Victoria Cougars and then briefly for the Moose Jaw Warriors, before playing three seasons in the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL) for the Knoxville Cherokees (1988-91).
He later coached AAA hockey for the Victoria Racquet Club for a decade (1992-2002), before serving as coach coordinator for three additional seasons, and was an assistant coach for the Victoria Salmon Kings in their inaugural season in the ECHL in 2004-05.
Giants General Manager Barclay Parneta said "with his extensive experience in hockey, from playing to coaching to scouting, we are thrilled to have him lead our scouting department and player development. After a long and thorough search, we are confident his values and experience align with the Giant identity and will help positively shape the future of our prospects and team.鈥�
鈥淚鈥檝e known Barclay a long time and the Giants are a great organization: ownership cares about the team, wants to win, and has been involved in the game a long time,鈥� Batters said. 鈥淎nd they have a great staff. A lot of these guys I鈥檝e seen around the rinks for years and they鈥檙e always friendly and always professional. It鈥檚 a good group of people that I鈥檓 excited to meet and work alongside.鈥�
Playing lacrosse, Batters won the Minto Cup as a player in 1988 and also won the 1997 Mann Cup as an assistant coach with the Victoria Shamrocks. He also scouted for the Colorado Mammoth (NLL) for three years.
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