Dan Church, head coach of the York University women’s hockey team, has been named an assistant coach for Canada’s national women’s under-22 team.
Right: Dan Church behind the Lions’ bench
Hockey Canada announced Monday the coaching staff for the under-22 squad, which is gearing up to compete in a three-team series against the USA and Finland at the University of Ottawa Aug. 20-27. Peter Smith from McGill University will serve as head coach, while Nancy Wilson of the University of British Columbia joins Church as an assistant.
“I am really excited about this opportunity to work with Hockey Canada and some of the best young female hockey players in the country,” said Church. “I look forward to coaching against Finland and the United States, two of the top hockey nations in the world. I am confident that I will be able to take what I learn from the competition in August and use it to further develop the women’s ice hockey program here at York.”
This year, his second with York, Church led the University’s women’s hockey team to its most competitive season in recent years. The Lions missed the post-season by just a single point as they compiled a 6-10-8 record and 20 points, a 16-point improvement from the previous year.
An advanced level I coach, Church spent seven seasons as an assistant coach under former national women’s team coach Karen Hughes at the University of Toronto prior to taking over as head coach at York in 2004. His U of T team captured the Canadian Interuniversity Sport national championship in 2001 and was three-times the Ontario University Athletics champion in 1998, 2000 and 2001.
National women’s under-22 team summer schedule
- Aug. 12-19 – development camp at University of Ottawa
- Aug. 20-27 – Canada, USA and Finland tournament at the University of Ottawa