Just 11 days after announcing their return as active members of the Central Hockey League, the Laredo-based Texas Brahmas announced the signing of CHL veteran Dan Wildfong as the club’s coach. Wildfong was the inspirational leader of the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs for the past eight seasons.

The Brahmas also announced that Forbes MacPherson, a teammate of Wildfong’s for six seasons, will become his assistant and standout goaltender David Cacciola has signed with the club to play next season.

The 31-year-old Wildfong established himself as one of grittiest and most competitive players in the Western Professional Hockey League and CHL. A 1999 graduate of Colgate University, Wildfong was named an All-Star in the 2000, 2003 and 2007 seasons, and is among the CHL/WPHL career leaders in multiple categories.

Wildfong’s leadership skills earned him regular acclaim in the Central Hockey League’s annual “Best of the Best Poll.” He was selected as “Best Leader” each of the last three seasons while twice being named a finalist for CHL most valuable player honors. Wildfong retires as the Mudbugs all-time leading scorer and becomes the eighth coach in Brahmas franchise history.

“We considered Dan an intriguing candidate when we began our coaching search,” said Brahmas General Manager Mike Barack. “Quite simply, Dan was so highly impressive during the interview process that we felt he deserved the opportunity to lead our club as we return to the ice this October.

“Dan was clearly the most prepared and most passionate candidate we considered, and we are confident his abilities and determination will represent our organization well both on, and off, the ice.”
Wildfong averaged better than a point a game in his 488-game career. His 494 points rank 19th all-time, while his 192 goals rank 20th and his 302 assists tie for 18th on the career leaders list. No stranger to the penalty box, Wildfong’s 1970 career penalty minutes are second only to Doug Lawrence’s 2,109. Wildfong was the Mudbugs’ captain the last two seasons and was widely respected for his contributions to the Bossier-Shreveport community.
MacPherson, a CHL All-Star in 2002, recorded 139 goals and 273 assists in 412 games with the Mudbugs and was a member of Bossier-Shreveport championship squads in both the 1998-1999 and 2000-2001 seasons.

Cacciola enters his third season of play in the Central Hockey League after posting remarkable statistics each of the last two campaigns. He recorded a 2.54 goals against average and a .926 save percentage with Bossier-Shreveport in 2005-2006, and a 2.62 GAA and a .917 save percentage for the New Mexico Scorpions last season, improving his career CHL record to 39-10-7.