Ryan hints strongly that his time as women’s National team head coach is over

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Troy Ryan isn’t ready to say it definitively, but it sounds very much like he has all but made up his mind about his future as the head coach of the Canadian women’s hockey team.

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Coming off a silver medal in Milan/Cortina, which was two minutes away from being gold, Ryan, who is also the PWHL’s Toronto Sceptres, hinted broadly that he feels it’s time to turn the Canadian coaching reins over to someone else.

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“I reached out to the athletes following the Olympics,” Ryan said. “Internally I think it is unknown or uncertain really what exactly the future is going to hold. I think I’m going on nine or 10 years with the National team program and I’ve said to many people recently that the program changed the trajectory of my career — the athletes, the staff that I’ve had the opportunity to work with, but I do believe to some extent that there is time for some change and this is probably the right time for change.”

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At question seems to be whether Ryan would walk away completely or stay on in some sort of advisory or other capacity.

“A lot of those finer details within those decisions I think still need to be worked out,” Ryan said. “Succession planning is always an important thing within national team programs, and I can only speak for my part in it. I would definitely encourage some succession planning in which ultimately I would want to help. I mean the program that has been so good to (me) and I think I have been good for that program as well, you want to be a part in helping them transition and move forward in the direction that is best for the program but also best for the individual players within it as well.”

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Who will replace Ryan?

Ryan mentioned two of his assistants as possible candidates for the job should he leave starting with Kori Cheverie, a fellow Nova Scotian who has been at his side on the Team Canada bench for a few years now and who also serves as head coach of the PWHL’s Montreal Victoire.

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“It’s important for her and her career and her future development as a coach to potentially get an opportunity like this,” he said of Chevrier before moving on to another of his assistants. “Someone like a Caroline Ouelette … they both have worked with me as assistant coaches for years and at some point it is someone else’s opportunity and someone’s else’s stage to do their thing.”

And to be clear, Ryan isn’t thinking about a move because of any criticism he has faced. He sees this time as the right time.

“I do think the program has been great for me,” he said. “I had the opportunity to work with a lot of great athletes and a lot of great staff members. I do think, win or lose in this situation, that this was a typical point of transitioning to some extent. The details within there have yet to be determined but it’s definitely a transition point for sure.”

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It’s no secret to anyone who has been following the social media offerings over these Olympics that Ryan was catching a lot of flak from certain members of the media and some members of the public for the way in which he utilized his personnel in Milan. The team as a whole also heard the doubts coming from both the public and a segment of the Canadian media.

Ryan, as has always been the case, pays very little attention to what he considers “outside noise” but given the opportunity to defend her long-time coach and the team she has been a member of these past three Olympics, National team assistant captain Blayre Turnbull grabbed the opportunity.

Olympic team took criticism

“A lot of people on the outside who were making comments about our team and our potential and the coaching strategy and the roster management — those people don’t have any clue what happens within our locker room or what happens on the bench,” Turnbull said. “I think it was great to see our team stay together and stay connected throughout the Olympics. I think it would have been telling if we had gone our separate ways or if we lost people throughout the journey and we didn’t. In fact, the opposite happened where it brought us together even closer. It helped us bond and really instilled the underdog mentality that I think we needed heading into the gold medal game.

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“I just hope everyone who was talking so poorly about our team watched that game and maybe changed their minds a little bit despite the outcome,” Turnbull said. “Obviously we didn’t win the gold medal like we wanted to or expected or knew we were capable of winning, but I think the way we played and the way we stood together and showed up with so much heart and so much passion, I think we laid it all on the line. Teams that do that believe in each other, believe in our coaches, believe in all of our staff. I was really proud to be a part of that team and I just hope people on the outside can see the product we put on the ice for that gold-medal game.”

mganter@postmedia.com

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