CALGARY, AB – Hockey Canada announced on Monday the coaching staff for Canada’s National Women’s Under-22 Team that will compete in a three team series against the USA and Finland at the University of Ottawa from August 20-27. Peter Smith (Montreal, QC/McGill University, CIS) will be the Head Coach for the National Women’s Under-22 Team for the 2006 August series. Smith will be joined by assistant coaches Dan Church (Toronto, ON/York University, CIS) and Nancy Wilson (Langley, BC/University of BC, CIS).

Peter Smith, the Head Coach of McGill University’s (CIS) Women’s Team, has been involved with the National Women’s Program since the 2003-04 season when he served as an assistant coach for Canada’s National Women’s Under-22 team. This will be Smith’s second stint as Head Coach of Canada’s National Women’s Under-22 team, having guided the team to a 2005 Air Canada Cup Championship. In addition to Smith’s coaching duties with the Under-22 team, he has been named as an assistant coach for Canada’s National Women’s Senior Team for the 2006-07 season. This will be his third season as an assistant coach with the National Women’s Senior Team. Smith was an assistant coach at the 2005 IIHF World Women’s Championship, winning a silver medal, and earned gold at the 2006 Olympic Winter Games. 

For Dan Church, the Head Coach of York University’s (CIS) Women’s Team, this will mark his first experience with Canada’s National Women’s program. 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 the Head Coach at York University in 2004. With the University of Toronto, he captured the CIS National Championship in 2001, and was a three time OUA Champion (1998, 2000, 2001).

Nancy Wilson, an assistant coach with the University of British Columbia’s (CIS) Women’s Team, will be joining the Canada’s National Women’s Under-22 program for the third time. Wilson’s National team experience include two years as an assistant coach with the Under-22 team in 1998--00, and she was the Head Coach for Team BC at the Canada Winter Games. An Advanced Level IV coach, Wilson was the Head Coach of the Vancouver Griffins (NWHL), the BC Breakers (WWHL) and an assistant coach with the Langley Hornets (BCJHL). 

The coaching staff for the Air Canada Cup in Germany in February will be selected from the National Women’s team coaching pool and will be named later in the season.

For more information on Canada’s National Women’s programs, please visit Hockey Canada’s official website at www.hockeycanada.ca