Three Western Hockey League head coaches have been named to the coaching staffs of Hockey Canada programs for the 2019-20 season.
Tuesday, Hockey Canada announced their coaching staffs to lead Canada’s National Junior Team and Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team at the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship and 2019 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, respectively.
Dan Lambert (Saint Boniface, Man. / Spokane Chiefs) has been named as the head coach of Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team with Dennis Williams (Stratford, Ont. / Everett Silvertips) serving as an assistant. Mitch Love (Quesnel, B.C. / Saskatoon Blades) will serve as an assistant coach on Canada’s National Junior Team.
“We are excited about the two coaching staffs that have been assembled for Canada’s National Junior Team and Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team, both of which include a combination of Canadian Hockey League, National Hockey League and international coaching experience,” said Shawn Bullock, director of men’s national teams for Hockey Canada. “We know all six coaches will represent our country with a tremendous amount of pride as they look to bring home gold medals at the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship and 2019 Hlinka Gretzky Cup.”
Lambert has served as the head coach of the Chiefs for the past two seasons, with his team recently reaching the Western Conference Championship for the first time since 2011. Lambert has twice been crowned as WHL Champion, captaining the Swift Current Broncos to the league title in 1989 and later winning it as head coach of the Kelowna Rockets in 2015. In addition to winning the Memorial Cup in 1989, Lambert was named the recipient of the Stafford Smythe Memorial Trophy as Most Valuable Player at the event.
Prior to being named head coach of the Rockets, Lambert served as an assistant for five seasons with the B.C. Division club. He has represented Canada twice – once as head coach of Team Canada Red at the 2014 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge and once as a player with Canada’s National Junior Team at the 1989 IIHF World Junior Championship.
Williams just completed his second season as head coach of the Silvertips, leading the team to its third-consecutive U.S. Division title. He has led the Silvertips to back-to-back 47-win seasons, the second-most in team history. Williams mostly recently represented Canada at the 2018 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, serving as head coach of Team Canada Black.
Love was named head coach with the Blades in May 2017 after serving as an assistant coach with the Silvertips for seven seasons. During the course of his WHL playing career, Love suited up in the WHL with the Moose Jaw Warriors, Broncos, and Silvertips.
Last summer, he won a gold medal as an assistant coach with Team Canada at the 2018 Hlinka Gretzky Cup. Love also won gold as an assistant with Team Canada White at the 2015 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, and was an assistant with Team Canada Red in 2016.
