Brian Gionta is a retired American professional ice hockey player. He was born in Rochester, New York. Gionta is known for his speed, skill, and leadership on the ice.

Gionta began his hockey career at Boston College, where he played four seasons from 1997 to 2001. During his time at Boston College, he was a standout player, earning All-American honors in his senior year.

After college, Gionta was drafted by the New Jersey Devils in the third round of the 1998 NHL Entry Draft. He made his NHL debut with the Devils in 2001 and quickly established himself as a skilled forward. In 2003, Gionta helped lead the Devils to a Stanley Cup championship, scoring a crucial goal in Game 7 of the Finals.

Gionta played for the Devils for seven seasons before signing as a free agent with the Montreal Canadiens in 2009. He played for the Canadiens for five seasons and was named team captain in 2010. Gionta then played for the Buffalo Sabres for three seasons and finished his NHL career with the Boston Bruins in 2018.

In addition to his NHL career, Gionta also represented the United States in international competition. He played in the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy, and was named team captain for the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. Gionta helped lead the United States to a bronze medal in the 2018 Olympics.

After retiring from hockey, Gionta has remained involved in the sport. He served as a player development coach for the Sabres and Division 1 Niagara University. He also worked as a television analyst for the NHL Network. Gionta has also been active in the Rochester community, where he founded the Gionta Foundation, a nonprofit organization that supports youth sports and education programs.

Sleasman (Gagliardi) joins the Rochester Jr. Americans staff after an impressive hockey career, both as a player and recently as a coach. Raised in Raleigh, North Carolina, Gagliardi is one of the first women from Raleigh to become a professional ice hockey player.

In 2015, Gagliardi joined the Boston Pride of the new National Women’s Hockey League. That season, Gagliardi was selected to participate in the first ever NWHL All-Star Game. The Pride would win the inaugural Isobel Cup, the championship of the NWHL. Prior to her professional career, Gagliardi played NCAA college hockey at Cornell University. During her four years with the team, she accumulated 89 points with the Big Red and was a part of four ECAC championship teams. She would serve as assistant captain for the team in her junior year, and co-captain in her senior year.

Most recently in 2019, she was hired by the Carolina Hurricanes where she organized and lead women’s hockey initiatives and grassroots efforts in the Carolinas. Gagliardi also developed season-long curriculum focused on technical and tactical on-ice development.

Len Perno has been a featured goalie coach for the NAHL’s Rochester Jr. Americans since day one.

Prior to his involvement with the Jr. Amerks, Perno served as a goalie coach for the RIT Tigers for multiple seasons. He came to RIT after serving as an assistant coach at SUNY Geneseo for five seasons. The Knights won two SUNYAC titles and made three trips to the NCAA Division III Tournament during his tenure. Perno worked with Geneseo’s goaltenders, while assisting in day-to-day practice and game preparation.

A Rochester native, Perno played three seasons for the Rochester Jr. Americans before heading to Oswego State. He played two seasons for the Lakers, earning the Oswego State Fan’s Choice Award in 1992-93. Perno received his bachelor’s degree in public justice and a minor in athletic coaching from Oswego in 1995.

Perno played three seasons at the professional level with the Reno Renegades of the West Coast Hockey League (WCHL), Knoxville of the ECHL and the Binghamton Rangers and hometown Rochester Americans of the American Hockey League (AHL).

Perno is a USA Hockey Level 4 Certified coach. He resides in Chili with his wife Anne Marie and has a son, Lenny, and daughter, Mia.

Lexi Stark, a native to Denver Colorado, is a Board Certified Athletic Trainer. She played hockey in high school and college. While attending the University of Wisconsin Eau Claire, Stark earned her B.S. and M.S. in 4years.

Aside from her experience in Division III athletics, Stark has had experience at a PT clinic and in Division I hockey.

Collins is a native of Rochester, who grew up playing minor hockey in Western New York and Ontario before a top junior season in the USHL with the Des Moines Buccaneers. As a standout player at Boston College, he led the nation in scoring as a senior and was runner-up for the 2006 Hobey Baker Award. After graduation, he signed an NHL contract with the Boston Bruins and played in the American Hockey League for the Providence Bruins. Chris went on to have an eight-year professional career, signing with two different NHL organizations and playing in both the Finish and German Elite Leagues. After retiring from professional hockey as a player in 2013, he returned to Rochester and co-founded The Evolve Sports Group, a Rochester based training company specializing in Player Development and Advancement. The past 5 seasons Chris has coached the 15O age group with the Rochester Coalition and BK Selects Organizations. He is currently Director of Hockey for the BK Selects Boys program.

Dr. Russ Manalastas is a board certified sports physical therapist and performance coach who focuses on rotational sport athletes, especially hockey players. He owns and operates MANA Performance Therapy, which is a privately owned company that is geared to empower, educate, and enhance the recovery journey of all athletes. He oversees all the return to sport and reconditioning aspects of injured athletes to ensure they are returning at the appropriate time, all while reducing the likelihood of the injury occurring again. He has worked with athletes of all ages and skill levels from middle school to the professional ranks and utilizes his hands-on rehab and training approach to maximize recovery and minimize time away from sport.

Katie is a Board Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics and owner of private practice Katie Vaughn Nutrition located in Rochester, NY. Her desire to work with active individuals and athletes started when she became a competitive runner at a young age.

Katie has a master’s degree in Nutrition and Dietetics from D’Youville College in Buffalo, NY. She is a Registered Dietitian, Certified Functional Strength Coach, and a Metabolic Efficiency Training Specialist. As a nutrition coach, Katie specializes in enhancing health and improving performance by creating customized nutrition programs based on an athlete’s sport, training cycle, health and performance goals using science-based nutrition strategies.

Katie has worked with all ages and abilities of athletes including high schoolers/juniors, recreationally active adults, D1 collegiate athletes, elite and professional athletes including endurance/ultra-endurance, lacrosse, hockey, Crossfit and strength athletes, wrestling, MMA, track and field, as well as working with police and military personnel.

Being a Sports Dietitian, athlete and coach, Katie understands the challenges that come with trying to figure out the right day-to-day fueling plan to improve overall body composition and performance. By using a very tailored approach she is able to empower her clients to be the best version of themselves— fit, strong, active, energized, focused, time efficient, and driven to succeed in all that they do.