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Usually when an alumni attempts to give back to their school and community, most times it comes in the form of a check.
For Guy Perron, his idea of giving back to the University of Maine is taking the women’s hockey program to national prominence.
Perron, who in his four years at Maine tallied 146 points, was hired as the women’s hockey coach in July and hopes to bring the same attitude and excitement to the women’s game that he experienced during his time in Orono.
“I was very excited to have a program and just getting a chance to teach the game to others was a bonus,” Perron said. “I just want to bring energy back to the program on and off the ice as well as bring people back to our games.”
Last season, Perron was an assistant volunteer coach with the men’s hockey team and was instrumental when it came to the run towards the national championship. Also, he was named as the interim head coach for the last two months of the season when former Black Bear women’s head coach Rick Filighera did not have his contract renewed. The team finished with a record of 12-16-4, as they lost to eventual champion Providence in the America East semifinals.
“Having him as a coach has been awesome,” said forward Cheryl White. “He was exactly what we needed around here and everyone has been on the same page since he arrived.”
“Also, everyone on the team likes the direction that we are going in this year,” she said.
Even though practice did not start until Saturday, Perron has had the team split up into groups of three to go over different drills before the team practices as a whole.
Before coming to Maine as a coach, Perron spent time as the head coach of the Chicago Freeze of the North American Hockey League, where he had a six-year tenure. During his time on the bench he coached the team to a 167-150-19 record and led the team to the playoffs every year.
“This year we have higher expectations, and I am really anxious to see how the season will go,” said defender Karine Senecal, who missed the end of last season with a torn ACL. “We know there is a lot of hard work ahead but its all for the good of the team.”
“Plus we have improved our conditioning which should help us as well.”
Besides the positive outlook he has brought for the future of the program, another thing the players love about their coach is the fact that he can relate to the obstacle of being a student as well as an athlete.
“He knows what its like to be in our shoes,” White said. “Because he played here he knows people and has used those connections to get our name known and out there.”
After his career at Maine, Perron went on to play professional hockey in Sweden before returning to the United States to take a coaching position. His first job came when he coached the Bangor Rams for two seasons. In his first season with the Rams, he was awarded the Class A Coach of the Year leading the Rams to the playoffs.
Then, in 1995, he accepted the position as an assistant coach at Dartmouth College before coaching the Freeze.
“I believe that when you teach hockey on any level, the systems are the same,” Perron said. “It’s important to see what they can grasp because our women are very eager to learn and I believe that they are people who can do a great job representing this university.”
Bangor Daily News