Pearn finds his new home coaching women’s game
Perry Pearn will coach the Canadian women’s team at the Four Nations Cup..
CALGARY— Perry Pearn wanted to take his 21 years of coaching in the NHL to a hockey team that valued his experience.
He found that in the women’s game.
Pearn will coach the Canadian women’s team at the Four Nations Cup starting Tuesday in Saskatoon. The hosts open the four-country tournament against Sweden at the SaskTel Centre. Finland and reigning Olympic and world champion United States round out the field.
Pearn was an assistant coach in the NHL long enough to be on the original Winnipeg Jets coaching staff, as well as that of the Jets 2.0.
The 67-year-old from Stettler, Alta, also was an assistant coach of the Ottawa Senators, Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers and most recently the Vancouver Canucks until 201617.
“I was at the stage in my career in the men’s game where there didn’t seem to be much value in the experience I had,” Pearn said. “Consequently, I felt that experience was way more valued on the women’s side.”
While Pearn ran the Canucks bench for pre-season games, his last head-coaching gig was with the Western Hockey League’s Medicine Hat Tigers in 199495. He also coached Canada to a gold medal at the 1993 world junior men’s championship.
Pearn hadn’t worked with a women’s team prior to doing some scouting for the 2018 Canadian Olympic team. He was added to the coaching staff as an assistant days before the Winter Games to be the team’s “eye in the sky.”Korea.
Coaches with NHL experience have been through the national women’s program before, most notably Kevin Dineen when, after he was fired as head coach of the Florida Panthers, parachuted in to coach Canada to gold at the 2014 Winter Olympics.
Since those men have had job opportunities that Canada’s female coaches don’t currently, the question is how long they’ll be with national women’s team before returning to the men’s pro game.
“I would probably be willing to make a commitment to the next Olympic Games,” Pearn said.