Toronto Maple Leafs director of player development Danielle Goyette temporarily stepped behind the bench for the Newfoundland Growlers Thursday night at the Mary Brown’s Centre, becoming the first female assistant coach to take the bench in ECHL history.
The move was made after Growlers head coach Eric Wellwood was placed in COVID-19 protocols earlier this week and will miss the three-game weekend series against the Reading Royals. She joins the team Thursday evening.
Goyette brings an immense amount of experience with her to St. John’s. The 56-year-old from Saint-Nazaire, Que., played 172 games with the Canadian women’s national team and registered 219 points in those appearances.
Goyette was a member of eight IIHF world championship teams and won two Olympic gold medals during her career from 1992 to 2007.
When she retired from playing, she joined the University of Calgary as the head coach of its women’s program. She won a national championship with the Dinos in 2012.
That same year she was an assistant coach with the Canadian women’s team that won gold at the 2012 IIHF World Championships. In 2014, she was part of Canada’s Olympic coaching staff that won gold.
Goyette was inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2013 and the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2017. She was recognized for her contributions to the game with the Order of Hockey in Canada in 2018.
After leaving the University of Calgary, Goyette was hired by the Maple Leafs in 2021.
The second of the three games between the Growlers and the Royals is scheduled for Friday at 7 p.m.
