Las Vegas Desert Dogs Head Coach and General Manager Shawn Williams has announced the hiring of Ken Millin as the team’s offensive coordinator and Rob Williams as its defensive coordinator Tuesday.
Both coaches bring decades of box lacrosse experience to Las Vegas, and will fill out Williams’ inaugural coaching staff for the 2022-23 season.
“I’m thrilled to bring on Ken and Rob to the Desert Dogs family,” said Williams. “Both of these guys have won at every level of the game they’ve been at. They possess the competitive drive, passion and dedication to the profession it will take for us to establish a winning culture in Vegas. Our players will benefit tremendously from their coaching.”
Millin, a five-time NLL Champion, joins the Desert Dogs after most recently serving as the offensive coordinator for the St. Catherines Jr. A in Ontario, where he helped lead the program to the 2021 Ontario Championship.
Millin spent five seasons playing along Williams for the Rochester Knighthawks from 2005-09, where him and Williams helped lead the franchise to the 2007 NLL title. Prior to his time with the Knighthawks, Millin played for one of the league’s greatest dynasties in Toronto where he won four NLL Championships from 1999-04.
Rob Williams, defensive coordinator for the 2019 NLL Champion Calgary Roughnecks, joins Williams’ staff with over 15 years of coaching experience in the box. Williams guided the Roughnecks’ defense for four seasons including the franchise’s first championship in 2019, while also serving as the head coach of the Maple Ridge Burrards of the Western Lacrosse Association since 2016.
Prior to stepping behind the bench, the Coquitlam, British Columbia, native patrolled the defensive zone for nine NLL seasons with the Baltimore Thunder (1996), Ontario Raiders (1998), the first Canadian NLL team, Vancouver Ravens (2002-04), Calgary Roughnecks (2005-06) and Edmonton Rush (2006-08). In 106 career games, he recorded 15 goals and 60 points along with 345 loose balls. Following his NLL playing career, Williams joined the Toronto Rock as a scout from 2012-14.
Williams and his staff will complete the franchise’s first NLL entry draft on Saturday, September 10. The Desert Dogs and the league’s other 14 teams will kick off the draft at 11 am PT/2 p.m. ET at the historic The Carlu in downtown Toronto. This year’s first round will be available for the first time on TSN.ca and the TSN app in Canada and ESPN+ in the United States, with additional rounds covered in real time on Desert Dogs (@vegasdesertdogs) and NLL social channels.
Ken Millin – Offensive Coordinator
Playing Career Highlights
- 1992-96 Jr A Orangeville Northmen
- Minto Cup Champions 93, 95, 96
- 1996-99 – Brock University
- University Champs 97, 98, 99
- 1997-2005 Major Series Lacrosse Six Nations, Brooklin
- Mann Cup Champion 2000
- 1998-2005 NLL Toronto, Rochester
- NLL Champ 99, 00, 02, 03, 07
Coaching Career Highlights
- 2019- present – Offensive Coordinator St Catharines Jr A’s
- Ontario Champions 2021
Rob Williams – Defensive Coordinator
Playing Career Highlights
- 1989-92 Jr A Coquitlam Adanacs
- 1993-2007 WLA (Major Lacrosse) – Burnaby, Maple Ridge
- 1995, 1998, 2001-2008 NLL Baltimore, Ontario, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton
- 1992 World U19 Field Championships – Team Canada (Bronze)
- 1998 World Men’s Field Championships – Team Canada (Silver)
Coaching Career Highlights
- 2016-19 NLL – Defensive Coordinator – Calgary
· NLL Champs 2019
- 2016-present WLA – Head Coach – Maple Ridge Burrards
- Western Champs 2016, 2018
- Coach of the Year 2016
- 2019 – World Box Lacrosse Championships – Defensive Coordinator – Team Iroquois (Silver)
About Las Vegas Desert Dogs
The Las Vegas Desert Dogs were launched on June 21, 2021 as the 15th team in the NLL beginning play in December 2022. The team is co-owned by Wayne Gretzky, Dustin Johnson, Steve Nash, and Joe Tsai. The team will play at Michelob ULTRA Arena located inside Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino.
For more information on the Desert Dogs, visit lasvegasdesertdogs.com, call 702-818-DOGS or follow the team on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter (