2021 World Championships

[Lindsay]

Worlds will take place May 6 -16 in Nova Scotia. Thought we needed a thread! In 2019 USA took gold over Finland in a shootout, and Canada took third with a bronze medal blow out win over Russia.

This year, Canada will be looking to avenge their bronze medal, Finland will be finding their way without Noora Raty, Alina Mueller will try to lead Switzerland to another IIHF medal, Sweden is STILL missing from the tourney, Elander fans can see him coach Denmark's women's team who are in this year's tourney along with Hungary, and USA will try to continue their machine like dominance on the ice despite getting a new head coach yesterday. They went through this a few years ago when GM Reagan Carey stepped down shortly before one of their tourneys. They will be fine I'm sure, but man this program has a lot of plot twists in advance of events.

Bob Corkum stepped down as USA head coach, reportedly for not being comfortable with the protocols. I assume that means Covid protocols. Have seen people speculate he is in running for Maine's men's head coaching job. USA Hockey's release includes kind words from Katie Million, so it seems amicable. In his tenure since fall 2018 Corkum only coached in one IIHF event and won gold, he also led USA to gold in the 2018 Four Nations.

Anyway, USA coaching line up now looks like this:

Joel Johnson (Minnesota assoc head coach) - interim head coach
Brian Pothier - assistant
Allison Coomey (Penn State assoc head coach) - assistant
Alli Altmann - goaltending coach.

Pothier and Johnson were part of the 2019 Worlds coaching staff. Altmann is 2012 Minnesota State alum and has been coaching ever since, including on the 2018 U18 USA team. Coomey is of course an '02 Niagara grad with a very extensive coaching background, including USA Hockey events.

This turn of events opens up wonderings about the Olympic year staff, but that is for another day.

[ARM]

Johnson coached the U-18 team to four straight golds through 2018.

[Lindsay]

Johnson coached the U-18 team to four straight golds through 2018.

Pretty incredible. Seems like a no brainer promotion.

[Timothy A]

Has Frosty even been looked at by Canada to coach in any of the series over the years? He kinda seems like a no-brainer to be involved in some way.

[Lindsay]

Not sure about Frosty, but you are right. Who knows the thought processes that go in to all this. I’ve wondered why Coach Sisti has never been involved on the USA side. Happily, Kelley Steadman from Mercyhurst, another up and
coming coach seems to be involved there, but still seems a strange omission over the years.

To tie up the Corkum resignation comment from yesterday, it sounds like he didn’t want
to deal with Covid protocols, not that he was worried about getting Covid or safety. So that’s that.

I wonder if it makes sense for USA and Canada to reimagine these National Team head coaching roles. It’s not clear to me whether it’s a full time job that pays like a full time
job, or if it’s seasonal work that pays as such. Would it make sense to have it as a full time role, give 4 year contracts, and load the head coach up with other women’s hockey responsibilities in the down times? Honestly don’t know the answer.

Regardless, it strikes me as difficult for the NCAA coaches to embrace these national team head coaching roles given their existing work loads. The fickle hiring and firing also excludes a group of coaches that need more reliable full time work, and probably more reps as bench boss too. There’s no question that both Katie Million and Gina Kingsbury take their roles seriously but the coaching situation on both sides of the border strikes me as something that can be improved. I’m hopeful that Troy Ryan will find success and longevity in the role, but he also coaches at Dal now. Perry Pearn just seemed like a miss altogether.

[Lindsay]

Some stories about Canada’s coaches:

Head coach Troy Ryan, who has been in women’s hockey for several years and became National Team head coach in Jan 2020, and Dalhousie head coach in fall 2020:

https://www.dal.ca/news/2020/09/24/a...-new-role.html

A story about Korie Cheverie and
Vicky Sunohara, 2 of 3 assistant coaches for Canada:
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.tsn...4017%3ftsn-amp

couldn’t find anything new about Doug Derraugh, 3rd assistant coach, but readers here know him as Cornell’s head coach, who wrapped up their 2020 season ranked #1 before Covid cancellations. Derraugh was an assistant coach on the 2012 gold medal winning WC team for Canada.

Meaghen Johnson at TSN seems to be writing a lot about the upcoming worlds if you’re interested in this stuff.

[ARM]

Has Frosty even been looked at by Canada to coach in any of the series over the years? He kinda seems like a no-brainer to be involved in some way.

Frost was Katey Stone's assistant for Team USA back before Mark Johnson got the gig to coach the 2010 Olympics. When Stone resurfaced for the 2014 cycle, she had a different staff.

[Timothy A]

Frost was Katey Stone's assistant for Team USA back before Mark Johnson got the gig to coach the 2010 Olympics. When Stone resurfaced for the 2014 cycle, she had a different staff.

Frosty was born in Canada, did he switch sides?

[ARM]

Frosty was born in Canada, did he switch sides?

His mother is American and he has dual citzenship.

[Timothy A]

His mother is American and he has dual citizenship.

That makes it even more intriguing. He could coach both sides if he wanted to. It's just very interesting that his top assistant is so deeply involved the National Program and he has barely sniffed it. But he is a young fella so the future is still wide open for him. I suppose with Johnson away from the farm, he can't be gone too or who will keep the herd in the right spot?

[Lindsay]

Ok so maybe Frosty can coach Canada in the Olympics, Joel Johnson can coach USA, and Minnesota assistant coach Bethany Brausen who hails from Little Canada, Minnesota (naturally!) can head coach Minnesota next year. :-)

[PuckLover]

Dare I say, good riddance?

https://www.startribune.com/us-women...rns/600047069/

Katie Million not making a stronger statement about this is not a good look for USA hockey.

[thirdtime's . . .]

Dare I say, good riddance?

https://www.startribune.com/us-women...rns/600047069/

Katie Million not making a stronger statement about this is not a good look for USA hockey.

The Boston Globe ran this same AP story yesterday. Despite the fact that the Atlantic provinces are doing relatively well, the rest of the country is in increasingly wretched shape and Canada is doubling down on protocols, including travel restrictions. Not a happy prospect for no-maskers. I think it’s only a matter of time before the obvious becomes the inevitable and this show gets yanked too, so he will not have been missed.

[Lindsay]

Ok I was able to click through. Right now I hope Million’s #1 focus is supporting the women, as they deal with this latest distraction that they do not deserve. It’s just sad in a way. Covid guidelines are not new and a coaching change could have been made 6 months ago.

I don’t expect a statement from USA Hockey saying anything negative about Corkum. He has close to a 20 year history with them.

Recall that in 2018 Reagan Carey stepped down as GM on 10-28, Corkum was named coach in 10-29, and Four Nations started on 11-6. Corkum’s involvement with women’s hockey at that point consisted of festival in Lake Placid, and supporting Joel Johnson at a U22 series.

Lather, rinse repeat. It’s time to reimagine what this head coaching role should be and who should be at the helm.

[Hockeybuckeye]

His mother is American and he has dual citzenship.

That's as bad as my dad being from Michigan and my mom from Ohio!
One of my great-grandmothers was Canadian but that's a family secret! (Wink)