Hanover
Athletic director Harry Sheehy said last weekend that he and his leadership team would soon meet to address the question. Schuler declined comment, beyond reiterating that Hockey Canada identified her as its top choice last fall, but has yet to extend a formal offer.
“We need to get them some experienced coaching help,” Sheehy said of the Big Green women’s team, which is 6-20-0 overall and 4-16-0 in ECAC play.
Top assistant Chris Cobb is in only his second Division I season and second assistant Courtney Sheary is in her first such campaign. Schuler would be gone for roughly a year if she took the Olympic job.
Sheehy addressed the situation shortly after hiring Schuler last spring.
“The key piece is getting an assistant who can be a de facto head coach if we need it,” he said at the time. “I want (Schuler) to have some sort of connection with the national program because that’s going to be a pipeline for recruiting.”
Cobb and Sheary aren’t ready for the head job and they will need to concentrate on recruiting if Schuler is away.
So here are a few thoughts on possibilities for an experienced coach who could step in for a year.
Judy Parish Oberting, Dartmouth women’s coach, 1998-2003. Oberting stepped down with a 114-40-8 career record to concentrate on her family, which now includes five school-age boys. The Hanover resident has more than enough on her plate, but she’s also a passionate Dartmouth alum and one of the best coaches in the history of the women’s game.
Pro: The players would love competing for her. Con: NCAA unlikely to allow five-boy Oberting unit to skate in games.
Holley Tyng, interim head coach at Colby (Maine) College. A Dartmouth assistant from 2005-16, she took over the Mules when their previous coach exited just before the current season began. Colby has begun 0-17-3, but Tyng recruited and coached many of Dartmouth’s current players and knows the athletic department inside and out.
Pro: Tyng could hit the ground running. Con: Would she let go of any bitterness at not being retained by Schuler?
Gillian Apps, Boston College assistant. Apps was an ECAC player of the year at Dartmouth and became a three-time Canadian Olympic gold medalist. She joined the BC staff last fall and the Eagles have started 21-3-5.
Pro: Repatriating your program’s greatest alum. Con: She’s only just begun her coaching career.
Rob Morgan, Yale assistant. He was a Dartmouth assistant from 2003-09 and was successful during five seasons as head coach at Division III St. Norbert (Wisc.) College.
Pro: Highly regarded in the coaching community. Con: Prying him from Yale seems unlikely, despite the Bulldogs’ lack of success.
John Dodds, Hanover High. Headed for the Marauders’ eighth consecutive NHIAA title in 12 seasons. There are those who wouldn’t even consider a high school coach. But he runs high-intensity, cerebral practices and has a nice mix of drill sergeant and father figure.
Pro: What a fabulous, local story it would make. Con: Would the players accept him?
Dartmouth is in a tough position. When it and Schuler didn’t place an experienced assistant on her staff, it created a short-term need. Now, they must cast around, most likely for someone who doesn’t have a current job or gets dropped by another program after the season.
Adding to the sticky situation is that Dartmouth graduates seven seniors in June, including standout goaltender Robyn Chemago.