Boston Bruins coach Claude Julien once again will be lending his expertise to his home nation next fall.
Hockey Canada announced Thursday its coaching staff for the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, with Julien, Barry Trotz, Joel Quenneville and Bill Peters serving as assistants under head coach Mike Babcock.
Babcock and Julien are the only returning coaches from the 2014 Olympic squad that won gold in Sochi.
“It’s always an honor,” Julien told reporters Thursday morning, via the Boston Globe. “Any time you’re chosen to participate in those kind of things, whether it’s the Olympics or the World Cup and stuff like that, the thing I enjoy most is that you’re dealing with elite athletes. You’re getting to know them.
“You’re also dealing with elite coaches. We can always learn from each other and we do that. We don’t hold any secrets back. I think it’s important if you’re going to have success to put it out there on the line and where maybe some of my things benefit somebody else, somebody else’s things might benefit me, so it’s a fair tradeoff.”
The timing of the eight-team tournament — Sept. 17 to Oct. 1 in Toronto — means that Julien will be forced to miss nearly all of the Bruins’ 2016 training camp. The same goes for any players selected to participate.
“I need to be really well-prepared as far as when camp starts, everything has to be in place,” Julien said, via the Globe. “I know I’m probably going to miss the first couple of weeks, but I’m going to be back there for the crucial week, which is the last week before the season starts.
“I’ve got great coaches around me that have been with me for a long time that know exactly how I operate, and if everything is put in place and they go out there and they execute those things, I don’t see an issue.”
Canada will play the United States, the Czech Republic and Team Europe in the World Cup’s group stage. Finland, Russia, Sweden and the North American U-23 squad will square off in Group B, with the top two teams from each advancing to the knockout stage.
Thumbnail photo via Matt Kartozian/USA TODAY Sports Images
