The coaching staff of the Hungarian national women's senior and U18 teams had a major overhaul with Canadian Dwayne Gylywoychuk taking over as a "mentor coach" of both teams. Icehockey.hu sat down with Dwayne who answered a couple questions about himself.
What was the reason that you came to Hungary?
The reason was that there was an opportunity to work with the federation that I think is going in the right direction. I saw improvement last year and this year at the IIHF camp in Vierumäki as well. I will also be working with people that I got to know last year at the world championships here in Budapest.
How long will you be working with the Hungarian teams (senior and U18)?
I will be back a couple of times throughout the year and traveling with both the senior and U18 teams to tournaments throughout the year.
How does the playing style that you had as a professional player translate to coaching women’s teams?
I learned a lot as a player and I was a type of player that worked for everything that he got, I was a stay-at-home defenseman that made a good first pass and let the forwards do their thing. I learned to read the ice and see how the play would progress. Now as a coach I realized that it is all about the details and habits that I realized you have to do as a player.
How would describe the style of play of a team coached by you?
First of all its all about work ethic, if you work hard and you treat the game honestly the game will reward you. I think also you need to play a team game, a puck possession game with a quick defence and a quick transition.