Thurs. 6/16/11
Coaching Updates
Needless to say, there’s been a lot of movement this spring, with still more to come. Here’s the latest we have:
Cornell will have two new assistants. On Tuesday, Mike Schafer hired Quinnipiac long-time assistant Ben Syer (meaning you can add Q-pac to the list of schools seeking an assistant). The top candidate for the position of the Big Red’s second assistant looks to be former Cornell forward Topher Scott, who, after playing a few years of minor pro, served as a volunteer at Miami last season.
Norm Bazin’s assistants at UMass-Lowell will be Jason Lammers, a well-travelled man who most recently has been at Colorado College, and Cam Ellsworth, an assistant at Sioux City (USHL) last season.
Greg Gardner, an assistant at Niagara for the last five seasons, and Scott Garrow, a long-time assistant at Cornell, will comprise Bob Prier’s staff at Princeton.
At Ohio State, Steve Brent has resigned after 13 years and will be taking a position outside of hockey. The most likely candidate for the spot is Layne LeBel. An assistant under Buckeyes’ head coach Mark Osiecki at Green Bay (USHL), LeBel went on to serve as an assistant on Dave Poulin’s staff at Notre Dame for a couple of years. This past season, LeBel was a volunteer assistant for the Buckeyes. We have also heard the name of NTDP assistant coach Joe Exter – the program’s goalie guru – in connection with this job.
Harvard has to replace Bobby Jay. We’ve heard the names of ex-Harvard goalie John Daigneau, an assistant at Canisius last season, and Northeastern assistant Albie O’Connell. The latter is particularly intriguing given what is -- or isn’t -- happening at Northeastern.
New Michigan Tech head coach Mel Pearson has hired Michigan alum Bill Mukalt for his staff. Last season, Mukalt, who was recruited to Michigan by Pearson in the early '90s, was head coach/GM of the New Mexico Mustangs, an NAHL expansion team.
Look for UMass assistant coach Red Gendron to take the open spot at Yale. He and Keith Allain have crossed paths working for USA Hockey – as well as in the pro game -- over the years. As for UMass, we keep hearing Blaise MacDonald will be coming on board as an assistant. Makes sense. He and Toot Cahoon share a BU connection. At any rate, if MacDonald does indeed go to UMass, the Minutemen will have three guys – Cahoon, MacDonald, and Len Quesnelle -- who have been NCAA Div. I head coaches.
St. Lawrence still has to fill the slot created by Prier’s departure to Princeton. We’ve heard Greg Carvel is high on the school’s wish list. Carvel, the captain of the Saints in ’92-93, was fired this spring after seven years as an assistant coach with the NHL’s Ottawa Senators.
For the University of Connecticut assistant’s position opened up by the hiring of Joe Dumais as an assistant at Union, we have heard the name of former long-time Providence assistant Dave Berard.
For the open head position at Hamilton College, vacant since Bazin’s hiring at UMass-Lowell, we are hearing the names of both Phil Grady, who retired after 24 years behind the Hamilton bench in 2008, and his son, Brian Grady. The younger Grady, a Hamilton alum, is currently the head coach at Morrisville State (SUNYAC). We are also hearing the names of current Hamilton assistant Graham Johnson, former Clarkson head coach George Roll, former Clarkson assistant Greg Dreschel, and current Army assistant Rob Haberbusch.
Former Union forward Joel Beal has joined the Dutchmen as a volunteer assistant. Beal has been an assistant at Albany Academy the past couple of years. He's also been the head coach of the Troy-Albany midget minor AAA team.