The SAIT women’s hockey team is looking forward to a fresh start for the upcoming hockey season with new head coach Kelsey Leifson.
The Trojans suffered a heartbreaking loss at the end of last year against the MacEwan University Griffins, losing in the ACAC championship 3 games to 1 of a 5 game series.
Leifson joins SAIT after spending almost two years as the assistant coach of the Mount Royal Cougars women’s hockey team.
Even though she reached success at Mount Royal, she couldn’t pass on the opportunity of a head coaching position to further advance her passion for coaching.
The idea of being able to share and teach her players about her experiences is why she loves coaching.
“Coaching makes even the bad days feel fine,” said Leifson in an interview.
SAIT was an attractive coaching destination because of a combination of opportunity and a sense of community.
The sport community makes a big college feel like a small, tight-knit community.
Coming into SAIT Leifson didn’t know what to expect.
A few weeks in, there is a lot of potential in this group of players. There are some habits that need to be changed and then progress from what has been learned from previous coaches.
Leifson is confident that once the players learn that, and learn from mistakes, they should have success.
Leifson wants to build a culture around the notion of accountability and players who want to go to war and expect the same out of each other. She wants her team to focus more on simplifying the tactile part of the game and less on the systems.
“It’s all about going to war for your teammates because you know they’d do the same for you.”
Coaching makes even the bad days feel fine. – Kelsey Leifson
The beauty of this team is there is no all-star player t0 rely on day in and out but rather a group of consistent players who will show up everyday and work hard.
“Goaltenders have been really good for us so far. All three of them will be a key for us this season. It is nice to feel comfortable putting anyone of them into a game.”
The Trojans first home game was on Oct. 7 against the Olds College Broncos. For up-to-date information, check out the Trojans website.
