Former Panthers player Peter Worrell will take over as the coach of the Florida Atlantic hockey club team beginning in fall.
“It will be a fun challenge,” said Worrell, who will continue to coach the North Broward Prep high school team.
Both teams are based at Incredible Ice in Coral Springs, so Worrell said it will be a workable situation.
“I have really enjoyed coaching, and I just felt this would be a new opportunity for me and would give more legitimacy to the FAU program,” said Worrell, who played for the Panthers from 1997 to 2003.
Worrell said he watched FAU play over the last couple years, and he knew the coach, Scott Grosky, who also was a coach in the Florida Scholastic Hockey League, comprised of local high school club teams.
“I saw some talent there, and thought I could help them,” said Worrell, who went to Grosky with the idea. “Hopefully it will be beneficial for myself and for the players,” Worrell said.
The team gets little financial support from the university, and Grosky said he is hoping adding Worrell as coach could attract more sponsors to help defer the costs.
“Peter is a well-known name down here and we think he is really going to help us,” Grosky said.
FAU plays in the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA), and its local league includes club teams from state schools including Central Florida, South Florida, Florida, Florida State and Florida Gulf Coasts
Worrell, who was born in Quebec, has lived in South Florida since retiring in 2006.
“I always loved my time in South Florida, and when [may career] was over, it was high on the list of places I wanted to live. I was tired of shoveling snow,” Worrell said.
