McGill University Athletics

MONTREAL -- Peter Smith has been at the helm of the McGill University Martlets since the first season that women's hockey was elevated to U SPORTS status in 1997. 
 
But he was on the other side of the country in 2010 for one of his favourite memories from his 20 years as head coach. 
 
"The national championship was held at StFX that year and one of the vans (the McGill team) was driving went off the road," recalled Smith. "It wasn't serious, just a wheel went in the ditch and they were stuck and waiting for the tow truck. I had players sending me texts saying, 'Peter we miss you.'
 
"It was kind of funny," recalled Smith with a grin.
 
While the team was en route to Antigonish, N.S., to eventually capture a silver medal at the 2010 nationals, Smith was on sabbatical, focusing on his duties as an assistant coach of the Canadian national women's team at the 2010 Olympics.
 
Smith opted to live in Calgary full-time in the months leading up to the Vancouver Games. He had traveled between Montreal and Calgary (the home base of the national team) when he was on the coaching staff for the 2006 Olympics. 
 
"Both Olympics were great experiences, particularly Vancouver," said Smith. "It was my second Olympics and I probably took it in a little more. To be in downtown Vancouver was just incredible. You couldn't go anywhere without seeing a Team Canada jersey.
 
"There were clearly a lot of really high expectations leading up to the Games. Everybody expected us to do well, which is fine. It was part of our preparation – we were prepared to play well on the ice and prepared to handle those expectations off the ice."
 
Smith has plenty of Olympic experience within his McGill program at the moment. Three of his assistant coaches played for Canada at the most recent Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea in 2018. Marie-Philip Poulin and Laura Stacey serve as skills coaches with the Martlets and Geneviève Lacasse is a goaltender coach.
 
"We have a real legacy of Olympians coming back and coaching the Martlets," said Smith. "The women's game needs great coaches and these are passionate people about making the game better."
 
Lacasse, who was also on the 2014 Canadian roster, was recruited to join the McGill staff by Alyssa Cecere, a former Martlets player who now serves with the program as a full-time associate coach
 
"Right away I wasn't too sure but I thought about it and thought it was a really cool opportunity," said Lacasse, who works alongside fellow goaltender coach Amey Doyle, who had stepped in as interim head coach at McGill when Smith was with the Olympic team. "I have three incredible goalies who just want to work and learn. It's such a treat."
 
In addition to the three coaches currently on the staff, the Martlets have been represented in various capacities at each of the last five Winter Games. Kim St. Pierre was the starting goaltender for Canada in 2002. Smith was joined in 2006 by St. Pierre, goaltender Charline Labonté and defenceman Gillian Ferrari, while Laura Ruhnke, another McGill rearguard, suited up for the Swiss team. 
 
St. Pierre and Labonté (both of whom also had spells as Martlet assistant coaches) played at the 2010 Games, along with Martlets blueliner Catherine Ward. Former McGill team captain Mélodie Daoust starred for Canada at the Olympics in 2014 and 2018.
 
Poulin, Stacey and Lacasse didn't suit up for the Martlets, but were enthusiastically welcomed into the McGill family.
 
"It's not just about the elite players, so many of the players are into coaching now," noted Smith. "To me, that's extremely satisfying seeing that they want to continue in coaching. It's such a passion for them, not only to do well, but to get better and learn. It's unbelievably rewarding and exactly what the women's game needs."
 
"We have so much knowledge from playing that we can transfer over, but I find that we get some new ideas from coaching that we can bring back when we're playing," said Lacasse, who also spent time as a graduate assistant coach at Providence College.
 
McGill isn't the only school with Olympic experience on its coaching staff. Daoust is now a skills coach with the Université de Montréal, while national team members Lauriane Rougeau, Erin Ambrose and Emerance Maschmeyer work with the Concordia Stingers.
 
"We have little bets going on when the teams are playing each other," Lacasse revealed. "Last year the losing team from playoffs between McGill and Concordia had to make dinner for the other three. We got a nice dinner out of it!"