Philadelphia, PA – Pat Carroll, former associate head coach of Lehigh University (ACHA D1) and assistant coach of King’s College (NCAA D3), has been announced as the new head coach of the Temple University Ice Hockey Club. His hiring comes after former head coach Mark Spease and club leadership mutually agreed to part ways after the Owls’ 2018-19 season.
Carroll played collegiate hockey for Slippery Rock University (Currently ACHA D1) from 1985-89. He was named captain in his sophomore year and played over 100 games before graduating with a bachelor of arts in communications and a minor in history in 1989.
Following graduation, Carroll joined the coaching staffs of Cardinal Dougherty High School and the Wintersport Royals before leading a Junior B team into Finland and Russia for an international competition.
Carroll left coaching for nearly two decades before joining Steel Ice Center’s (Lehigh, PA) in-house training program in 2010. He left in 2013 to coach Emmaus High School and Emmaus Middle School.
Following a year in which both Emmaus High School and Emmaus Middle School made the playoffs, Carroll signed on to serve as an assistant coach for Lehigh University. He became associate head coach for the 2017-18 season. The Lehigh Mountain Hawks made the ECHA Playoffs in three of four seasons with Carroll behind the bench. He became the assistant coach of King’s College in the 2018-19 season before joining the Owls for 2019 and beyond.
“I am excited for the opportunity to lead Temple Ice Hockey for the upcoming season and grateful for the opportunity that has been afforded me by the team and the University,” Carroll said.
This is Carroll’s first collegiate hockey experience as the head coach. He coached the forward and power play units and helped recruit players with Lehigh University.
“Having been around the ACHA for four years prior to my role last season in a different league,” he said, “I am aware of the possibilities that lie directly ahead of us and am excited to face the challenges head on with the team. This conference has been heavily tilted to one or two teams the past few years. Our goal is to be one of those teams at the top come February.”
President and vice president Charles Ghiazza and Ryan Trefz are pleased with the hire.
“Pat stood out to us after our first interview with him because of his experience in the ACHA along with experience and knowledge in our conference, the ECHA,“ Trefz said. “Pat also shared the same short-term goals and long-term vision for the future of Temple Hockey with us. Pat checked off all of the boxes for what the club needs in our new head coach in the present and in the future.”
Among those short-term and long-term goals Carroll shares with Ghiazza and Trefz is to increase the team’s winning percentage compared to previous seasons, advance to the second round of the ECHA Playoffs for the first time in club history, create a culture that is open and team-driven through communication and a collaborative approach to both practices and game strategies, as well as improve team depth through club and Temple University exposure.
“I am looking forward to a change in our team culture,” Ghiazza said. “I believe Pat has the ability to change the team into a winning program which will change the culture in to one centered around excellence and winning.”
Carroll is thankful for the opportunity to coach the Cherry and White.
“I would like to thank Charles and Ryan for including me in their search for a head coach, and ultimately their decision,” he said. “Thanks also to Pete Vincent and Brandon Brown from Campus Recreation for taking time out of their schedule to discuss this role and how the Ice Hockey program fits inside their areas of responsibilities.”
Carroll lives in Quakertown, PA along with his wife, Jeanne Marie, and their two children, Dan and Colleen.
About the Temple University Ice Hockey Club
The Temple University Ice Hockey Club was founded in 1940 and has played in the top division of the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA), the top league for club hockey in the United States, since 2015. Temple plays in the Eastern Collegiate Hockey Association (ECHA) alongside geographical rivals in Villanova, Drexel, and more. The Temple Owls play at The Rink at Old York Road at 613 Elkins Ave, Elkins Park, PA 19027. The Owls have made the playoffs in four-straight ECHA seasons.
You can watch Owls games live on the TUICE Network at TempleIceHockey.com or the Temple University Ice Hockey Club YouTube Channel.
Originally published at TempleIceHockey.com