Former Canadiens player Josh Gorges (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
Josh Gorges never planned on becoming a coach. After all, this was the undrafted kid from Kelowna who carved out more than 700 NHL games through grit, sacrifice, and resilience. When he hung up his skates, it felt like the right time to step away and focus on his family. But as so often happens in hockey, the game found a way to pull him back.
Now, at 41 years old, Gorges is behind the bench with the Kelowna Rockets — the very team that gave him his start two decades earlier. What began as a new challenge has quickly become a full-circle moment, reconnecting him with the roots of his career and giving him a chance to shape the future of young players chasing the same dream.
Coaching in The WHL
Walking back into the rink in Kelowna, Gorges admits it felt strange at first. The smell of the ice, the chatter in the dressing room, the weight of the Rockets logo on a jacket instead of a jersey — all of it stirred old memories. But this time, he wasn’t there to block shots or kill penalties. He was there to teach.
“It’s a bit surreal. If you would have asked me 20 years ago if I would be, at 40 years old, not only coaching, but coaching the Kelowna Rockets, I would have said you were crazy,” said Gorges.
But the love of the game always finds a way of pulling you back in, and that’s exactly what’s happened with Gorges, who’s joined the Rockets in a Memorial Cup year as an assistant coach.
“If I can come back and give back by sharing my experiences and knowledge, it’s fun. I tell the guys, my biggest joy out of this is that I hopefully get to sit on my couch in a couple of years and watch Hockey Night in Canada and see some of the guys I coached out there on the ice.”
Molding Hayden Paupenekis
Among the young players Gorges is working with, Hayden Paupanekis stands out for more than just his size. Drafted by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2025 NHL Draft, Paupanekis is seen as one of the Canadiens’ most intriguing CHL-based prospects with the kind of frame and skillset the organization has been seeking down the middle.
Kelowna will serve as his proving ground — and Gorges will be a key part of helping him figure out exactly how to use those tools effectively.
“He’s a big kid with a really good skill set on him as well,” said Gorges of Paupanekis. “I get to work with him now to help him learn what type of player he is and what kind of player he’s going to have to be to be impactful – not only for us this season, but also at the professional level to have success.”
For the Canadiens, Paupanekis represents a different kind of prospect than the smaller, speed-driven forwards they’ve drafted in recent years. He has the potential to become a classic power forward, the type of player who can impact games in the corners, at the net-front, and in the grind of the playoffs.
But with that upside comes the challenge of consistency, maturity, and learning to bring the same effort shift after shift — lessons that Gorges, who carved out an NHL career on reliability and defensive trust, is eager to pass along.
“He’s part of that dying breed of power-forwards. He can drive the net, win board battles, battle hard in the corners, and make space; those are skills that are extremely valuable come playoff time,” continued Gorges. “He has that ability and the skillset to be that, but that’s what we’re going to work with him on.”
That kind of game doesn’t just show up overnight, and Gorges knows it will take time for Paupanekis to grow into the role. The tools are there, but the challenge lies in learning how to bring them to the ice shift after shift, regardless of the opponent or situation.
“He’s going to have to find consistency, which is the case with most players. It takes trust from the coach. That comes not only from games or practices, but every time you’re on the ice; consistently doing what’s asked of you and what’s needed of you.”
Relationship With Carey Price
There are players you respect, and then there are players who etch themselves into your memory with every save, every moment of calm in the storm. For Josh Gorges, Carey Price has always been the latter.
“We used to play games against each other as 16-year-olds in the WHL, and he was just making these saves that would make me say, ‘Man, this guy is good,’” said Gorges of his first impressions of Carey Price. “And then you get a chance to play with him and you get it right away.”
Gorges notes that what separated Price wasn’t only his ability to stop pucks, but the way he made life easier for everyone around him. In Montreal, where every play is magnified and every mistake is dissected, Price’s steadiness became a shield for his teammates.
“You don’t really appreciate what he did and who is until you don’t have him around anymore. His ability to play pucks was incredible,” said Gorges. “As a defenseman, not having to eat those punishing hits on the forecheck because he could handle the breakouts was huge. Half the time, he made better breakout plays than I did.”
Their shared history extended beyond the ice. Both coming from Western Canada, both learning the ropes of the NHL under the brightest of spotlights, they leaned on one another through the whirlwind of life as young pros.
“Being two young guys from out west coming up together in the NHL, we got to experience all the rollercoaster rides of being an NHL player and what it is to play in Montreal. “He was in the scrutiny of the media non-stop,” continued Gorges. “You want to be a goalie for the Montreal Canadiens with the history and the Hall of Fame goalies they’ve had? That’s not an easy thing to do and I think his personality was so perfect a fit for being a goalie for the Canadiens. He just wanted to play hockey.”
Now, years removed from the Bell Centre spotlight, their paths have crossed once again. This time it’s in Kelowna, with their families intertwined and a friendship that has stood the test of time.
“Now we’re both here in Kelowna. Our wives are friends now and the kids are getting to know each other, and we talk often. We’ve come a long way from being those two young boys.”
Price has been unofficially retired since the spring of 2022, but his contract has remained on the books for the Canadiens since then. Now, Price’s name is in the news because the Canadiens are expected to move his contract, which is set to expire at the end of the year.
“Every time Carey thinks about hockey, it’s about the Montreal Canadiens – it’s who he is. No matter what happens now with his contract, this is all just numbers, he’ll always be remembered as a Montreal Canadien,” said Gorges about the possibility of Price’s contract getting moved. “And he knows this is just business in the end, but at the same time, I know that when he does officially retire, he’ll want to do it as a Montreal Canadiens player. I know just who he is and what he’s done for that city, it would be special to him for it to end that way, but he’s smart enough to understand that only a very select few of us actually get to go out on our own terms.”
Being a Montreal Canadien
For all the memories Gorges has collected in hockey, nothing compares to wearing the Canadiens’ jersey. The city of Montreal doesn’t just watch hockey — it lives it, breathes it, and expects it to be played at the highest standard. For a player like Gorges, who built his career on heart and sacrifice, being part of that tradition carried a meaning far beyond wins and losses.
“Hockey comes to an end for all of us, but the relationships that you build and the people in Montreal I got to know last forever. I had to go back to Montreal this summer, my son was in a hockey tournament this summer and I called the trainers to see if they could let me show my sons the locker room,” said Gorges of his recent visit to Montreal. “I wanted to bring them to the room to show them what we used to do, and it would be a great experience for my kids. And, because I’ve been so close to those guys, they go out of their way and they opened up the doors to the Bell Centre for me and my sons. It was really special.”
Those ties only deepened when he first slipped the Canadiens jersey over his head. Even after years in the NHL, it carried a different weight — one that was impossible to ignore.
“The first time in Buffalo I got to be put the jersey on. I don’t know how to explain it, but there’s a different feeling when that jersey goes over your shoulders. It’s not just a team you’re playing for; it’s the Montreal Canadiens.”
The connection was made even more personal when Gorges learned just how deeply it mattered to his family. His grandfather, a lifelong Montreal fan, was overjoyed when his grandson joined the team he had quietly supported for decades.
“I remember when I got traded, I got a phone call from my grandfather. Before the trade – I didn’t even know this – my grandfather was a Montreal Canadiens fan since he was 17 years old. He said that when he enlisted in the military, everyone was a Toronto Maple Leafs fan and it drove him crazy. So, just out of spite, he decided to start cheering for Montreal and became a lifelong Canadiens fan.
So, when I got traded, I was crushed. I loved my time in San Jose and I didn’t know what was waiting for me in Montreal. And then, he called me and he was so excited that his grandson was getting to play for his favourite team of all time. And that’s when I realized how big a deal this was. I was going to the Mecca of Hockey; where every story comes and goes and I got to be a part of that.”
For Gorges, the highlight reel isn’t about his own goals — there weren’t many to count. What endures are the memories of improbable runs, the grit of teammates, and the pride of standing tall against giants.
“I could probably list you every goal I scored, because I didn’t score many of them,” joked Gorges. “But really, that 2010 run where we came back against Washington while being down 3-1, and then immediately flying to Pittsburgh, not even going home, to start the next series a day later. Playing the defending Stanley Cup champions and beating them in seven games too. It was such a wild ride and I was proud to have been a part of that team.”
Hockey gave Gorges a life he never could have imagined — a career carved out of determination, friendships that will last a lifetime, and a place in the lore of one of the sport’s most iconic franchises.
As he shifts from the battles on the ice to guiding from behind the bench, the message is clear: the legacy of a player isn’t just in what they did, but in what they leave behind.
And in that sense, Josh Gorges is still writing his story.