Former Brahmas coach selected for 2013 Winter Universiade

Forbes MacPherson named Team Canada Assistant Coach

Former Texas Brahmas assistant coach Forbes MacPherson has been selected as one of the assistant coaches for Team Canada at the 26th Winter World University Games.

Gardiner MacDougall, head coach of the reigning CIS champion UNB Varsity Reds, will serve as Team Canada bench boss and will be assisted by MacPherson and St. Francis Xavier's Brad Peddle.

The trio was selected by a committee chaired by AUS men's hockey convenor John Ryan.

"We are thrilled to have these three AUS head coaches lead the 2013 men's hockey team on behalf of the conference and CIS," said Ryan, the Director of Athletics at Cape Breton University. "Gardiner, Brad and Forbes bring a great deal of passion, experience and knowledge of the game of hockey and they will no doubt represent us very well on the international stage. I am confident these three individuals will work very diligently over the coming months to put the very best team possible to represent CIS in Slovenia."

At the biennial multi-sport event, which will run from January 30th to February 9th, Canada will be represented in men's hockey by a team comprised entirely of players from the AUS conference.

MacPherson, a native of Stratford, P.E.I., has led the University of Prince Edward Island hockey program since 2009 and has played or coached for a number of years at both the university and professional levels.

He skated for the University of New Brunswick from 1991-93 and then with the Panthers from 1994-96, before moving on to professional stops in the CoHL, IHL, ECHL, WPHL and AHL. From 2000-07, he was a player/assistant coach with the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs (WPHL & CHL), and from 2007-08, was assistant coach and assistant director of hockey operations for the Texas Brahmas.

Canada has tallied an impressive 12 medals in 13 all-time appearances at the Universiade men's hockey tournament, including three gold, three silver and six bronze.

In addition to the title won by the all-AUS team in 2007 in Italy, Canada was crowned in 1991 in Sapporo, Japan, while represented by the senior national squad, and in 1981 in Jaca, Spain, when the University of Alberta Golden Bears wore the Maple Leaf uniform.

Photo Credit: Robert Keith