Williams to lead Canada at 2023 World Juniors
Everett Silvertips general manager and head coach Dennis Williams has been named head coach of Canada for the 2023 World Juniors.
Williams was an assistant coach on Canada’s 2022 gold-medal winning team in August but will lead the team in Halifax later this year. Stephane Julien (SHE), Brent Kisio (LET) and Alan Letang (SAR) will join Williams’ staff as assistant coaches while Kelly Guard (PA) will act as goaltending consultant.
Ottawa 67’s general manager James Boyd returns as the U20 lead for the Program of Excellence management group.
The 43-year-old is in his sixth season as head coach of the Silvertips, adding the general manager title to his responsibilities in July 2021. He has led the Silvertips to four U.S. Division titles, three Western Conference regular season titles and a Western Conference playoff championship. He has been named WHL Western Conference Coach of the Year twice (2017-18, 2019-20) and U.S. Division Coach of the Year once (2021-22). In addition to his gold medal at the 2022 World Juniors, Williams won a silver medal as an assistant with Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team at the 2019 Hlinka Gretzky Cup. He also served as head coach of Team Canada Black at the 2018 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge.
A four-day selection camp will be held in Moncton Dec. 9-12 before a final roster for the 2023 World Juniors is announced. The selection camp roster will be announced in the coming weeks.
The 2023 World Juniors takes place in Halifax and Moncton Dec. 26 – Jan. 5.
