Winning the gold does not guarantee the return of the US women’s hockey coaches

BRAMPTON, Ontario (AP) Less than a year into coaching, John Wroblewski has brought a women’s hockey gold medal back to the United States for the first time since 2019.

While both Wroblewski and USA Hockey are open to continuing their relationship, the question remains whether there will be hell behind the bench next year in Utica, New York.

Asked twice about his status during the World Series in suburban Toronto, Wroblewski said he wanted to continue before deferring questions to USA Hockey executive director Pat Kelleher.

I told you you need to talk to Pat, Wroblewski repeated to The Associated Press shortly after Victory over Canada with the gold medal 6-3 on Sunday night.

On Friday, Kelleher fully supported Wroblewski moving on, but said it was the coach’s decision.

The uncertainty revolves around whether the 41-year-old Wroblewski will begin to draw interest from NHL teams this offseason.

Wroblewski rose through the minor league ranks and first landed on the NHL’s radar during a four-year stint overseeing USA Hockey’s national development program. His team in the 2018-19 season stood out featuring eight first-round draft picks, led by No. 1 pick Jack Hughes going to the New Jersey Devils.

The success led to Wroblewski being hired to coach the Los Angeles Kings’ American Hockey League affiliate, the Ontario Reign. He was there for a year and a half before resigning for personal reasons in December 2021.

He was then tapped by USA Hockey to coach the women’s team to replace Joel Johnson, whose tenure ended after the 2022 Beijing Winter Games, when the defending Olympic champion Americans settled for silver after a 3-2 loss to Canada.

Wroblewski introduced right away fast-paced style to keep pace with and against Canada. The philosophy showed promise when the Americans beat Canada in the opening round of the 2022 World Championships in Denmark before falling 2-1 in the championship game.

This year, Wroblewski oversaw a reshaped and younger U.S. team that featured five players making their World Championship debuts.

On Sunday, the Americans overcame three one-goal deficits and finally wore down the experienced, twice-defensive Canadians. Captain Hilary Knight scored the game-winning goal with 3:01 remaining, capping her three-goal performance with a goal 27 seconds later.

If the 33-year-old Knight had any reservations about the absence of some of his more familiar teammates, those worries faded in the postgame celebration. Knight skated over and personally presented the championship to Wroblewski before embracing him in a hug.

It meant a lot, Wroblewski said of Knight, who took over as captain in the absence of Kendall Coyne Schofield (pregnant) and won her tournament-record ninth gold medal.

Personally, being with Hilary has been so refreshing, he added. He has a presence about him. I follow him anywhere.

BALANCING GROUPS

The International Ice Hockey Federation is considering a balanced two-team lineup for the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Games as the competition gap between European teams closes.

The new format would be similar to the men’s competition, where teams are divided into two groups based on their equal ranking, with no division before the playoff rounds.

IIHF President Zsuzsanna Kolbenheyer said the federation will test the new format at the Women’s Under-18 World Cup next year before considering it at the senior level.

In the current format, there are five best teams in Group A and five best teams in Group B. While all five teams in Group A qualify for the playoffs, only the top three teams in Group B advance. The teams in Group B are ranked from sixth to eighth, and will face the three best teams in Group A in the quarterfinals.

The current format favors the fourth and fifth placed teams in Group A, guaranteeing them a place in the semi-finals. It’s not that the fourth- or fifth-place finisher in Pool A hasn’t medaled in five tournaments, including the 2022 Beijing Games, since the IIHF expanded the field from eight to 10.

TWO TOO MUCH?

Russia’s absence due to the war in Ukraine resulted in the IIHF following its rules so that the last two teams, Hungary and France, were eliminated after this tournament. Previously, the bottom two teams faced the loser’s elimination.

Germany coach Thomas Schadler expressed relief at finishing eighth, but said it was unfair for two teams to be relegated as it would slow down development. Schadler said the best way for nations to improve is the opportunity to play against elite competition, rather than having to yo-yo between elimination and continuing the grueling process of competing in qualifying tournaments.

Kolbenheyer said the IIHF is considering changing the relegation rules as it evaluates whether to change its grouping format.

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