IOWA’S COACHING STAFF BONDING IN SHARED OFFICE

Feb 13, 2024

The Iowa Wild coaching staff arrives at Wells Fargo Arena hours before commuters converge on downtown Des Moines. Each coach parks across the street from the rink, braves the wind off the river, and ducks into the building as the sun breaks the horizon.  

Technically, the Iowa Wild locker room has three offices dedicated to the coaching staff along its entrance hallway. In the team’s first ten years, two assistant coaches kept their desks in the first room. The head coach sat in the center office, while the video coach and goaltending coach shared the furthest office. 

In Brett McLean’s first season as the team’s head coach, the staff has a unique arrangement; all five coaches work together in the largest, center office. While they still use the other offices to change or hold the occasional meeting, most of their working hours are spent elbow to elbow. McLean modeled the new setup off his experience in Minnesota. 

“In Minnesota, we were always in the same room and that’s what I’m used to,” said McLean. “There’s no need to spend half of our work day trying to get everyone in the same room to have a coaches meeting. We ask our players to play like a team, be unselfish, and always work together, so we need to lead as a staff.” 

“It’s different, especially when you’ve got a big man like (assistant coach) Cody Franson who takes up a lot of room,” said assistant coach Ben Simon. “It’s an interesting dynamic and a different philosophy. It’s been great in terms of sharing ideas and watching video.” 

Simon credits McLean with creating a unique environment where each member of the staff has a voice. 

“There’s shared responsibilities and shared reward,” said Simon. “It’s not viewed as ‘his power play’ or ‘his penalty kill.’ It’s our everything. The setup is group encompassing and aligns perfectly with the values he’s trying to build with the team.” 

There are upsides and downsides to coaching professional hockey in central Iowa. While the workday starts early, the coaches typically manage to finish their days and head home ahead of rush hour traffic.  

Richard Bachman, who is in his fourth season as the team’s goaltending coach, is the only one accompanied by family in Des Moines. McLean, Simon, and Franson each made the challenging decision to live away from their families during the season when they were hired. 

McLean, who previously served as…