U.S.A. Hockey announced Tuesday that Wisconsin women's hockey head coach Mark Johnson will lead the U.S. women's national team at the Vancouver Olympics in 2010. Johnson, who has coached the Badgers to two national championships since starting at Wisconsin in 2002, said he is thrilled to have the opportunity.
Obviously it's going to be the experience of a lifetime,"" he said. ""I can't wait to roll my sleeves up and start the process.""
Johnson is widely known for being the top scorer on the ""Miracle on Ice"" U.S. hockey team, which won a gold medal at the 1980 Olympics in Lake Placid, N.Y., after beating a U.S.S.R. team many considered the best in the world. He reflected on that experience, which inspired the 2004 film ""Miracle,"" and the bond that legendary coach Herb Brooks inspired among his players.
""As those friendships started to strengthen, as we got closer to Lake Placid, we really became a team,"" he said. ""That's the vision I want to [have] with this group.""
When asked about Brooks' notoriously tough style, Johnson said, ""My approach might be a little bit different, but we are certainly hoping the results will be the same.""
Johnson's father, ""Badger"" Bob Johnson, coached Wisconsin to three men's national championships and led the U.S. Olympic hockey team in 1976. His motto, ""It's a great day for hockey,"" still hangs in the Kohl Center.
""His enthusiasm was always there,"" Johnson said about his father, who passed away in 1991. ""He would certainly be smiling here today with this opportunity that I've been presented with.""
Current Wisconsin women's hockey players say they are excited about Johnson's opportunity. Team captain Erika Lawler said she couldn't imagine anyone better suited for the job.
""I'm so happy for him,"" she said. ""He is going to be a great spokesperson for the sport ... He is going to do really good things for the program and for girls' hockey in general.""
Johnson will have to leave Madison for most of the 2009-'10 season to prepare for the Olympics and will leave assistant coaches Tracey Cornell and Dan Koch as co-coaches.
