Swiss coach Marcel Jenni's move up from U18 to U20 has benefitted the players.
photo: © International Ice Hockey Federation / Chris Tanouye
The World Junior Championship is the pinnacle of junior hockey, and once a player turns 20, he is regarded as a senior player, leaving his teens behind.
But the U20 could not be as successful as it is without the underpinning of the under-18 event. As the U20 is the finish line, the U18 is the start line, and it is at this tournament that players experience their first IIHF competition.
While these events are an important part of a player’s development, the same can be said for coaches. In fact, the Canadians and Americans cycle through coaches much like players, inserting a new bench boss (mostly) every year to help as many develop as possible. Indeed, only three men have coached Canada’s U18 and U20 teams—Pat Quinn, Don Hay, Tim Hunter. And only four Americans have done the same—Jeff Jackson, Mike Eaves, Ron Rolston, John Hynes.
In Europe, it’s more often the case that a coach will stay with the U18 or U20 program for many years, and often a U18 coach will move up to U20 with the same cohort of players, for consistency. Here in Gothenburg, three Europeans teams have coaches who made the move up—Christer Nylund of Norway, Magnus Havelid, Sweden, and former player Marcel Jenni of Switzerland.
In Jenni’s case, he coached the U18 for three years, 2021-23, and 17 of the 23 players in Gothenburg played under him at that level. When the need for a new coach came up for the 2024 World Juniors, Jenni was a natural fit.
“The coaches are all pretty close, and we had the opportunity to move one coach up to U20, so I think it's a good move,” Jenni explained. “I know the players. We can work on the same thing structure-wise, and mentally, you can build a good relationship with the players, which is important if you want them to keep growing through the process. It's a benefit for sure.”
“It's always nice when you know the coach,” said forward Jonas Taibel, who played U18 in 2021 under Jenni and is now in his third World Juniors. “Everybody knows him from U18s, so we know him as a coach and how he wants up to play.”
Nylund agrees as it applies to Norway’s program as well. “There were some changes in the federation, and they asked me to coach the U20. I know the program and have been in it for a long time. I felt I had more to give, especially on this level, and I know the group. So, to be a little bit selfish to say, I think I was the right guy for the job.”
But coaching teens is different from coaching pros who are in their twenties and thirties. The juniors are still young in every way, on ice and off.
“You need to realize they are still kids,” Jenni said of the complex relationship between coach and young players. “They have to learn to play men's hockey, coming through U20, the decision making, the other tools. They have to grow as players and as well as people. It's an important part of the process. It's not just on the ice.”
Taibel agrees. “It's important to have a good relationship with the coach. It's not always just about hockey. It's about off the ice, talking to him, and I think that's an important thing with a coach.”
Officially, the U18 and U20 programs are never really connected. The players don’t train or practice together, and they play in different leagues and levels. But within a federation, there is a clear connection, a cord, so to speak, that connects them. Any way a program can strengthen that cord, the development of players and junior teams will improve. And that’s why it’s ideal that, as players move up, so do coaches. It only makes sense.
But the U20 could not be as successful as it is without the underpinning of the under-18 event. As the U20 is the finish line, the U18 is the start line, and it is at this tournament that players experience their first IIHF competition.
While these events are an important part of a player’s development, the same can be said for coaches. In fact, the Canadians and Americans cycle through coaches much like players, inserting a new bench boss (mostly) every year to help as many develop as possible. Indeed, only three men have coached Canada’s U18 and U20 teams—Pat Quinn, Don Hay, Tim Hunter. And only four Americans have done the same—Jeff Jackson, Mike Eaves, Ron Rolston, John Hynes.
In Europe, it’s more often the case that a coach will stay with the U18 or U20 program for many years, and often a U18 coach will move up to U20 with the same cohort of players, for consistency. Here in Gothenburg, three Europeans teams have coaches who made the move up—Christer Nylund of Norway, Magnus Havelid, Sweden, and former player Marcel Jenni of Switzerland.
In Jenni’s case, he coached the U18 for three years, 2021-23, and 17 of the 23 players in Gothenburg played under him at that level. When the need for a new coach came up for the 2024 World Juniors, Jenni was a natural fit.
“The coaches are all pretty close, and we had the opportunity to move one coach up to U20, so I think it's a good move,” Jenni explained. “I know the players. We can work on the same thing structure-wise, and mentally, you can build a good relationship with the players, which is important if you want them to keep growing through the process. It's a benefit for sure.”
“It's always nice when you know the coach,” said forward Jonas Taibel, who played U18 in 2021 under Jenni and is now in his third World Juniors. “Everybody knows him from U18s, so we know him as a coach and how he wants up to play.”
Nylund agrees as it applies to Norway’s program as well. “There were some changes in the federation, and they asked me to coach the U20. I know the program and have been in it for a long time. I felt I had more to give, especially on this level, and I know the group. So, to be a little bit selfish to say, I think I was the right guy for the job.”
But coaching teens is different from coaching pros who are in their twenties and thirties. The juniors are still young in every way, on ice and off.
“You need to realize they are still kids,” Jenni said of the complex relationship between coach and young players. “They have to learn to play men's hockey, coming through U20, the decision making, the other tools. They have to grow as players and as well as people. It's an important part of the process. It's not just on the ice.”
Taibel agrees. “It's important to have a good relationship with the coach. It's not always just about hockey. It's about off the ice, talking to him, and I think that's an important thing with a coach.”
Officially, the U18 and U20 programs are never really connected. The players don’t train or practice together, and they play in different leagues and levels. But within a federation, there is a clear connection, a cord, so to speak, that connects them. Any way a program can strengthen that cord, the development of players and junior teams will improve. And that’s why it’s ideal that, as players move up, so do coaches. It only makes sense.