In leading Canada’s National Men’s Under-18 Team to its fifth gold medal, TCS Live speaker Gardiner MacDougall recorded his 56th consecutive win behind the bench this season.
That’s not a typo.
MacDougall, who is also the Head Coach at the University of New Brunswick, coached Team Canada to a thrilling 6-4 win over the United States for gold at the IIHF U18 World Championship in Espoo, Finland.
Belief in his players was ultimately what led to the victory, according to Team Canada captain Porter Martone.
“Coach MacDougall really believed in us,” said Martone. “We listened to him and we believed in his coaching philosophy.”
Team Canada trailed 3-2, mid-3rd period. The team’s comeback began with Gavin McKenna scoring his second goal and Cole Beaudoin sounding the horn to give Canada the lead. Team Canada scored two power-play goals capitalizing on a five-minute major given to the United States for checking to the head. At 14:19 in the 3rd period, Tij Iginla built on the team’s power-play success as he found the back of the net for the game-winning goal.
MacDougall was highly praised for his game plan although he quickly credited his fellow coaching staff for the team’s success at Worlds.
“I was fortunate to have a great staff and goaltender coach. They always say the secret to a successful coach is the GAGG rule, and that’s get a great goalie.”
Coach Gardiner MacDougall knows all about success on the ice. As he walked into the Canadian locker room, MacDougall joked with players there was a lot of pressure on you them to keep his perfect season alive. Following the undefeated tournament, MacDougall had officially tallied 56 straight wins (University of New Brunswick and Team Canada combined).
“He is one of the winningest coaches in hockey right now,” said team captain Martone. “He is coming to win and he taught us everything we need to know. He is a great coach and a very positive mentor for not just me but the whole team too. He hasn’t lost a game this year and that is pretty amazing.”
For his efforts at the University of New Brunswick this season, MacDougall was named USports Coach of the Year. He led his squad to back-to-back USports University Cup Championships and is officially the all-time winningest coach in University of New Brunswick history.
MacDougall’s exceptional talent for influencing his players has positioned him as one of the greatest coaches to guide from the bench. We are thrilled to listen to Gardiner MacDougall at TCS Live in June. He will dive deeper into the dynamics of his coaching approach and effectiveness.
