There were rumours the Battlefords AAA Sharks may not have a team next season, but those rumours were put to rest last week.
Battlefords and District Female Hockey Association announced Brittany Penner would be the head coach for the 2012-13 season.
Penner served as an assistant coach at the beginning of last season, but after head coach Jean Fauchon and two other assistant coaches resigned, Penner stepped in as the interim coach in November. She was eventually selected after the application process as the coach for the remainder of the season.
Although the Sharks played with just 10 skaters for most of the season, Penner helped the undermanned Sharks give some of the best teams in the Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League all they could handle. The team also broke their two-season long winless streak with a 1-0 victory over Swift Current in December and showed many signs of improvement towards the end of the season.
Penner has played hockey herself, moving up the Battlefords Minor Hockey Association ranks before playing two years with the Midget Sharks house team. From there she played one year of CIS hockey in Saskatoon and also played in provincials and a western Canadian championship at the women's level.
She says she hopes to have a full roster of players for the season and wants female hockey players in the area to be excited and enthusiastic about the season ahead and the Sharks' program.
Along with the head coach, two assistant coaches have been hired and the manager position has been filled. Barrett Penner and David George will serve as assistant coaches while Les Trach will remain as the team's manager. Penner is looking to bring one more coach with playing experience on board as well.
Penner explained they are looking at the possibility of holding a summer skills session for female hockey players in the area to drum up more interest and show what the Sharks' program has to offer.
