2 N.S. coaches returning to lead national women's hockey team at 2026 Olympics

CBC

3 hours ago

Nova Scotia's Troy Ryan and Kori Cheverie are returning to the coaching staff tasked with guiding Canada's women's hockey team to another Olympic gold medal at the 2026 Winter Games.
This will be Ryan's third time behind the bench of the Olympic squad and his second as head coach. The role was something he previously thought would never be in the cards for him.
"So now to be … months away from my third Olympic Games, it's definitely one of those pinch-me kind of moments and not something I ever really take for granted," Ryan said.
Ryan was the head coach and Cheverie an assistant when the Canadian women reclaimed gold at the 2022 Beijing Games by edging the United States 3-2 in the final.
Ryan and Cheverie both coach in the Professional Women's Hockey League, leading the Toronto Sceptres and the Montreal Victoire, respectively.
The 2026 Games in Italy mark the first Winter Olympics since the PWHL's launch in January 2024.
Ryan said the league has raised the calibre of women's hockey, with players from different parts of the world playing in one place.
And he expects that to translate to the Olympics next year.
"They're playing at a high level on a more consistent basis," Ryan said. "They're being exposed to more resources. They're getting quality coaching and quality support staff around them."
Cheverie, of New Glasgow, N.S., has worked with Ryan for six years now.
As coaches from a small province, she said there can be a feeling of being "up against some of the Goliaths of the world" and of needing to punch above your weight.
"That type of gritty mentality has certainly served us well while we work for the Canadian national team," said Cheverie, who was last season's PWHL coach of the year.
She said she's excited to attend next year's Winter Games. While she was an assistant coach with the national team in 2022, she was not able to physically attend the Beijing Olympics due to the COVID-19 pandemic and instead contributed from home.
In the coming months, players and staff will be training together in Calgary, Toronto and Montreal. Hockey Canada is fitting those training blocks around the PWHL schedule.
"You definitely have to maximize the time that you get with [players] each time," Cheverie said.
Toronto Sceptres captain Blayre Turnbull of Stellarton, N.S., was one of 30 players named to Hockey Canada's August training camp roster.
She was an assistant captain on the gold medal-winning team in Beijing.
Ryan said this will likely be his last Olympic Games, adding that he thinks it's a good opportunity for someone else to be at the helm after 2026.
He remembers the first time he got to be part of the Olympic opening ceremony.
"You remember all the hockey coaches you had growing up," he said. "You remember all the school teachers that had an impact in your life.
"Moments like that … there's very few that you can have in sports that kind of hit home like that."