6/20/25
(Seattle, WA) PWHL Seattle named Steve O’Rourke as the first head coach of the franchise. O’Rourke was coaching in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) with the Oshawa Generals and was promoted to head coach for the 2024-25 season.
O’Rourke has ties to Washington, as he played for the WHL’s Tri-City Americans in the 1990s. O’Rourke was drafted by the New York Islanders in 1992 in the seventh round, but never played in the NHL. O’Rourke is from Summerland, British Columbia, Canada, which is roughly 55 miles north of Oroville.
O’Rourke has spent time in the WHL with the Prince George Cougars as an associate coach and director of player development and with the Red Deer Rebels as an assistant coach. Other stops include serving as the BCHL’s Langley Rivermen’s general manager and head coach, as well as two seasons as an assistant coach with the AHL’s Abbotsford Heat (an affiliate of the Calgary Flames, now relocated to become the Calgary Wranglers). He was also an assistant coach for Canada’s Team Red at the 2019-20 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge.
O’Rourke’s first task will be the 2025 PWHL Draft, which takes place on Tuesday at 4 PM, where team holds the eighth overall pick. The Draft will be streamed on the PWHL YouTube page.
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