Euan King has been appointed as the new Head of the Great Britain Goaltending Development Programme.
King, who is also Goaltending Coach for Great Britain Men and Elite League side Cardiff Devils, takes over from the departing Gary Brine.
Ice Hockey UK Chair, Clifton Wrottesley, said: “I’d like to thank Gary for his work with the GB Programme.
“He has taken the GB Juniors Netminding Programme to new heights, ensuring that we have a steady stream of talent coming through the system.
“Gary’s relentless pursuit of excellence is widely recognised. I would like to pay personal tribute and add my sincere thanks for the advice and guidance that I’ve received from Gary over the past couple of years.
“I believe Gary will continue with his development clinics being run out of Ozone in Bracknell, so will remain close to the programme, but we also wish him all the best for his future endeavours.
“Euan is a superb fit for the programme, already playing a vital role with the men’s team as part of Pete Russell’s coaching staff.
“It makes absolute sense to have a fully integrated programme, right the way through from the men’s team down to our junior and youth programmes. He’s a highly-respected coach across Europe and will play a vital role in the development of our young netminders.”
King said: “I’d like to thank Gary Brine for the hard work and dedication he has put into the GB Programme over the past five years and laying some strong foundations for to build upon.
“We, as a group, have some exciting plans for the goalie programme moving forward and finding ways to engage with our best prospects on a more regular basis through development days, team camps and video.
“Goaltending is such an important position and something I’m extremely passionate about. We have some raw talents coming through and it will be our job to educate these prospects to the best of our abilities.”
King led a GB goalie camp this month for some of the programme’s top young prospects, which took place at the National Ice Centre in Nottingham.
Also in attendance were fellow netminder coaches John Russsell and Dean Worsfold, as well as Sam Kelvey (Strength & Conditioning), Colin Booth (MG1 Elite Performance) and Vic Kerlin (Manager).
The one-day camp consisted of on-ice skating and footwork sessions, as well as number of off-ice activities. This included strength and conditioning, cognitive development and video.
King continued: “The video sessions used footage of GB netminders Ben Bowns and Jackson Whistle.
“This was good for the prospects to see as it shows our men’s national team goalies using the techniques and tactics we are teaching at the top level of international hockey and having success.
“The next camp takes place at the beginning of April with a focus on the tactical side of games, threat identification and reading situations in the classroom.”
Photos by Kevin Bennett.
