As much as the focus has been on what players PWHL Seattle will be selecting in the upcoming expansion draft, the club is also hot on the hunt for a new head coach. According to new general manager Meghan Turner, she's wasting no time in her search.
"We're certainly moving quickly through the process prioritizing a head coach," said Turner. "I think it takes a village. I like to have peopel surrounding me to make sure i get some good input and I want buy in from my coaching staff as well. I'm super collaborative. Certainly moving through that process quickly and trying to lock in some folks before the expansion draft here."
With the expansion draft slated for June 9, the timeline for Seattle to hire their inaugural head coach is drawing near.
With Turner's connections to Massachusetts, and as an alumni of Quinnipiac, it would not be surprising to see her lure a coach from ECAC or Hockey East to her staff. That list could include Quinnipiac head coach Cassandra Turner who has been behind the bench in the NCAA since 2005, including as head coach for Quinnipiac since 2015. She also has experience with Hockey Canada. With the PWHL's recent hires of coach Greg Fargo as head coach and Josh Sciba as assistant coach of the New York Sirens, and Cara Gardner Morey as general manager of PWHL Vancouver, NCAA head coaches who people once believed would not leave their roles for the PWHL have shown an interest in making the jump.
When asked what attributes and characteristics Turner is looking for in her head coach and staff, Turner had clear expectations.
"First things first, just good people," said Turner.
"I think getting folks into the organization who have a high level of integrity, are really good communicators. This league is really dynamic, so making sure that we are algined on how we communicate and the way we communicate is really important," she continued. "That trickles down to the players as well, I think. that's very imperative to have a coach and a coaching staff who has a good pulse on the players in the locker room and can communicate with the players well and builds trust within the player group and obviously from a staffing perspective too."
Turner also defined what she's looking for in terms of an on ice direction with her coaching staff. Turner wants to be a team that has a clear grasp on structure and strategy, and tactical preparation.
"I think more tactically I tend to be a little bit more structured, I like to have a good plan going into the year, and so we'll look to have someone who probably mirrors that mindset a little bit," Turner said. "I think I would jive well with someone who's a little bit more structured in nature and that's kind of what I'm looking for."