USA Hockey today named Minnesota State’s Troy Jutting its 2003 National Coach of the Year.
In August 2003, Jutting coached the U.S. Under-18 Select Team to its first-ever gold medal at the Under-18 Junior World Cup in Piestany, Slovakia. The team registered a perfect 5-0-0 record, including two victories over Russia, as well as handing seven-time defending champion Canada a 4-3 loss. Jutting is in his fourth season as the men’s head coach of Minnesota State. During the 2002-03 campaign, he was named the WCHA Coach of the Year, leading the Mavericks to a 17-game unbeaten streak during the regular season, a second-place finish in the WCHA regular-season standings and a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
“Last year, Troy was able to take an exceptional group of players and, in a short time, mold them into a team that was able to capture USA Hockey’s first-ever gold medal in the Under-18 Junior World Cup,” said USA Hockey’s Coaching Education Program director Mark Tabrum.
Also recognized was former BU forward David Quinn as USA Hockey Developmental Coach of the Year. Quinn is part of the U.S. National Team Development Program in Ann Arbor. The Volunteer Coach of the Year is Leo Bronston of Onalaska, Wis., involved in the Wisconsin Amateur Hockey Association for nearly 15 years.
The three USA Hockey Coaches of the Year have also been nominated for the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) Coach of the Year in each of the categories. Coaches are nominated in all sports represented within the USOC family.
The five finalists in the National and Developmental categories and the winner of the USOC Volunteer Coach of the Year title will be honored May 1-3 at the Colorado Springs Olympic Training Complex. The USOC National Coach of the Year and USOC Developmental Coach of the Year will be announced during a May 2 dinner at the Cheyenne Mountain Resort in Colorado Springs, Colo.
