King’s College announced Tuesday that Jen Kindret has been named the head coach of the school’s new Division III women’s program that will take the ice in 2017-18.
Kindret will begin her duties Aug. 15.
The 27-year old Kindret comes to King’s after spending the last two years as a graduate assistant coach at Lindenwood.
“First and foremost, I would like to thank [King’s director of athletics and recreation] Cheryl [Ish] and the rest of the search committee for believing in my vision and giving me this opportunity,” Kindret said in a news release. “It is any coaches’ dream to be a head coach, let alone start their own program. I feel extremely privileged and honored to have been selected to be the first ever women’s ice hockey coach at King’s College. I am excited to get back to the state of Pennsylvania and get things going. Any chance to be a part of growing the game of hockey, especially for girls, is remarkable and humbling.
“Everyone I met while on the King’s campus and touring the Revolution Ice Center was so excited about the new hockey programs. The family-like feel and the way people passionately talked about King’s made it feel like an instant home. The start of both the men’s and women’s hockey programs is an exciting time at King’s and having a shared enthusiasm about this new era is huge. Having the support of the school and athletics department will be an integral part of building this program.”
Kindret played at Robert Morris, where she was a member of the CHA All-Academic Team and Colonial Leadership Academy.
After concluding her playing career, Kindret served as an assistant coach at Chatham in 2013-14.
Aside from her time in collegiate coaching, Kindret worked as an instructor with the Pittsburgh Penguins organization from 2012 to 2014. She taught and demonstrated drills at camps and clinics, primarily focusing on skill development while using USA Hockey’s American Developmental Model guidelines.
In addition, she served as an instructor at the Edge of Excellence Skating Camps, where she taught and demonstrated David Roy skating techniques to boys and girls ages 8-16.
At King’s, Kindret has an agenda waiting for her.
“My top priorities in building the King’s ice hockey program from the ground up will be to recruit the right student athletes and have representation on campus and throughout Wilkes Barre,” she said. “I will look to build the culture of the program and have the team represented well at King’s and within the community. We will build King’s as a staple of a program to play at in Division III and by sticking to the process and developing these student athletes, we will find success in no time. I am looking to recruit student athletes that fit into the King’s culture. I want to bring in student-athletes that represent King’s College and the women’s hockey program in the highest form. I want them to be excited to be a part of history. They need to resonate with our team’s core values, have pride in being a Monarch, and want to get as much as they can out of their time at King’s.”
Kindret earned her Bachelor’s degree in Sports Management from Robert Morris in 2013 and completed her Master’s degree in Business Administration in March.
“We are very excited to welcome Jen Kindret aboard as our first-ever women’s ice hockey coach,” Ish said in a statement. “We feel very fortunate we have found a coach who has the experience and passion for the sport that Jen has. Having played and coached at the Division I level as well as coaching in Division III, we feel Jen has an excellent overall knowledge of college ice hockey that will enable her to build the foundation of our women’s program from the ground up. She may look young on paper, but at 27 years of age, Jen is mature beyond her years. Having played and coaching ice hockey almost all of her life, she has a true love for the sport that players will appreciate and admire.
“Jen has the leadership skills and drive needed to create a program and we are lucky to have her. We will have just the fourth women’s Division III ice hockey program in the state and are confident we found a quality young coach who will work her very hard and has the vision to make our program successful. With our women’s and men’s head coaches now secured, we have taken a huge next step to our debut in 2017-18.”
