Pecknold Learns from World Championships Experience

College Hockey News from CHN


June 2, 2017
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by Jeff Cox/CHN Reporter (@JeffCoxSports)





Related ArticlesRand PecknoldQuinnipiac



Rand Pecknold can vividly recall two games from when he was 13 years old. He remembers watching the United States defeat the Soviet Union and Finland en route to the 1980 Olympic Gold Medal.

It wasn’t just a monumental moment in USA Hockey history. It also defined Pecknold’s passion for the sport that has meant so much to him.

Now, 37 years later, Pecknold finally had the opportunity to represent his country over the past month as an assistant coach on Jeff Blashill’s staff at the recently concluded World Championships.

“It was amazing. It’s a huge honor to coach for USA Hockey,” said Pecknold, who will begin his 24th season as head coach at Quinnipiac this fall.

The opportunity arose last summer thanks to a longstanding friendship with Blashill, the Detroit Red Wings head coach who rose through the ranks as an assistant and head coach in college hockey with Ferris State, Miami and Western Michigan.

Blashill invited Pecknold out to Detroit for an exchange of ideas and coaching philosophies with the Red Wings staff. That meeting led to Blashill hiring Pecknold for the staff he took to the World Championships.

“From a professional development standpoint, I couldn’t have asked for a better experience. I was immersed in the hockey world for three weeks. You’re bumping into all these NHL coaches. It was unique and I learned a ton,” Pecknold said.

The experience gave him an even greater appreciation for the rigors of professional hockey and what it takes to be a player at that level.

“You watch them on TV and you see some of [the players] coaching against them in college, but their character level … they were all A-plus character players. They had high compete levels and great work ethics. They were selfless. It ...

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