BRAMPTON, Ontario — In lower than a yr since taking on as coach, John Wroblewski has introduced a girls’s hockey gold medal again to the United States for the primary time since 2019.

While each Wroblewski and USA Hockey are open to persevering with their relationship, the query stays as as to whether he’ll be behind the bench for subsequent yr’s world championships in Utica, New York.

Asked twice about his standing throughout the world event in suburban Toronto, Wroblewski stated he’d love to remain on, earlier than deferring inquiries to USA Hockey government director Pat Kelleher.

“I told you, you’ve got to talk to Pat,” Wroblewski repeated to The Associated Press shortly after a 6-3 gold-medal win over Canada on Sunday evening.

On Friday, Kelleher was in full help of Wroblewski staying on, whereas saying it was the coach’s resolution.

The uncertainty revolves round whether or not the 41-year-old Wroblewski begins attracting curiosity from NHL groups this offseason.

Working his manner up by the minor league ranks, Wroblewski first landed on the NHL’s radar throughout a four-year stint overseeing USA Hockey’s nationwide developmental program. His 2018-19 group stood out in that includes eight first-round draft picks, led by No. 1 choice Jack Hughes going to the New Jersey Devils.

The success led to Wroblewski being employed to teach the Los Angeles Kings’ American Hockey League affiliate, the Ontario Reign. He was there for a yr and a half earlier than stepping down for private causes in December 2021.

USA Hockey then tapped him to teach the ladies’s group because the substitute for Joel Johnson, whose time period ended after the 2022 Beijing Winter Games, the place the defending Olympic champion Americans settled for silver after a 3-2 loss to Canada.

Wroblewski instantly launched an up-tempo model to maintain tempo with and counter Canada. The philosophy confirmed promise, with the Americans beating Canada within the preliminary spherical of the 2022 world championships in Denmark, earlier than a 2-1 loss within the title recreation.

This yr, Wroblewski oversaw a retooled and youthful U.S. group, which featured 5 gamers making their world championships debut.

On Sunday, the Americans overcame three one-goal deficits and finally wore down the skilled, two-time defending champion Canadians. Captain Hilary Knight scored the go-ahead aim with 3:01 left after which capped her three-goal efficiency by scoring 27 seconds later.

If the 33-year-old Knight had any reservations about a few of her extra acquainted teammates not making the lower, the considerations evaporated within the postgame celebration. Knight skated over and personally introduced the championship trophy to Wroblewski earlier than embracing him in a hug.

“It meant a lot,” Wroblewski stated of Knight, who took over the captain’s function within the absence of Kendall Coyne Schofield (pregnant), and gained her event record-matching ninth gold medal.

“Personally, being around Hilary has been so invigorating,” he added. “She’s got a presence about her. I’ll follow her anywhere.”

BALANCED GROUPINGS

With the aggressive hole closing amongst European groups, the International Ice Hockey Federation is contemplating going with a balanced two-grouping format for the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Games.

The new format could be just like the lads’s competitors wherein groups are break up evenly primarily based on their rankings into two teams with no crossover play till the playoff rounds.

IIHF government Zsuzsanna Kolbenheyer stated the federation will check the brand new format on the girls’s Under-18 world championship subsequent yr, earlier than contemplating it on the senior degree.

The present format options the highest five-ranked groups positioned in Group A and the underside 5 in Group B. While all 5 Group A groups qualify for the playoff spherical, solely the highest three Group B finishers advance. The Group B groups stay seeded sixth by eighth primarily based on their order of end, and face the highest three Group A groups within the quarterfinals.

The present format favors Group A’s fourth- and fifth-place ending groups by making certain them a berth within the semis. At concern is not any fourth- or fifth-place Group A finisher has medaled within the 5 tournaments - together with the 2022 Beijing Games - because the IIHF expanded the sphere from eight to 10 groups.

TWO TOO MANY?

The absence of Russia as a result of struggle in Ukraine led to the IIHF following its bylaws by having the underside two groups — Hungary and France — relegated after this event. Previously, the underside two groups would face off with the loser being relegated.

German coach Thomas Schadler expressed aid in ending eighth, whereas saying it’s unfair to have two groups relegated as a result of it stunts growth. Schadler stated one of the simplest ways for nations to develop is having the chance to play in opposition to elite competitors relatively than yo-yoing between being relegated and having to renew the grueling means of competing in qualification tournaments.

Kolbenheyer stated the IIHF will contemplate altering its relegation guidelines when reviewing whether or not to change its groupings format.

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