BOSTON – Head coach Tara Watchorn of the Boston University women's ice hockey team has announced that Courtney Kessel and Megan Myers will join her staff as associate head coach and assistant coach, respectively.

Watchorn coached with both over the previous season as she and Kessel won gold with Canada at the 2023 IIHF U-18 Women's World Championship and Myers was an assistant under Watchorn at Stonehill. Kessel has spent the past four years as an assistant at Princeton.

"I am beyond excited to officially welcome Courtney Kessel and Megan Myers to our coaching staff," said Watchorn. "I am fortunate that I was able to play and coach with both of them over the course of my career and I cannot wait to get going as a group. It is important to all of us that we create the culture within our staff that we want for the team, and I have no doubt that we have the right women for the job."

Kessel has served as an assistant at Princeton since 2019 and she made an immediate impact there as the 2019-20 squad won the school's first ECAC Hockey tournament title and posted a program-record 26 wins. That team had three players ranked in the top 12 nationally in goals and points per game. In 2021-22, Princeton became the first No. 8 seed in ECAC history to win a series against the top-seeded team.

Before Princeton, Kessel served as head coach of the Toronto Furies of the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL), leading them to the semifinals of the 2018-19 Clarkson Cup in her first and only season. Prior to her professional coaching stint, Kessel won three world championship medals with Hockey Canada, claiming a gold and two silvers.

This will mark a return to Hockey East for Kessel, who was an All-American and a first-team league all-star at New Hampshire and captained the Wildcats during her senior year (2010-11) before playing five seasons with the Brampton Thunder and then spending a year overseas with Ice Dream Kosice (Slovakia) and Linköping HC (Sweden). She was named the CWHL Rookie of the Year in 2012 and was a two-time all-star.

"Courtney is dynamic and consistent in her approach to coaching," said Watchorn. "She is able to effectively teach, model the way, and build authentic relationships with the people around her.  We are lucky to have her expertise from coaching and playing at the highest levels."  

Myers was named Stonehill's first full-time assistant coach in August 2021 and helped Watchorn prepare the Skyhawks program for its inaugural season, which resulted in a 17-15-2 record and the No. 3 seed in the NEWHA playoffs. Myers had previous experience in building a program from the ground up, having assisted at Becker College for its first five seasons, and helped the Hawks earn four Colonial Hockey Conference tournament appearances.

A teammate of Watchorn during their playing days for the Boston Blades of the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL), Myers is a longtime staff member for the Can/Am Hockey Camps in Lake Placid during the summer months and was a college advisor and skills director with CarShield Hockey in Saint Louis, working with girls' camps and clinics for all ages from the U-11 to U-18 levels and assisting players on their individual college hockey recruiting process.

Myers was a standout at Utica College, garnering All-ECAC honors all four years for the Pioneers and serving as captain her senior year while earning CCM All-America honors. Myers finished her collegiate career with 74 goals and 69 assists for 143 points, totals that rank first in program history for goals, second in points and fourth for assists. She was inducted to the Utica Athletics Hall of Fame in 2022. Myers went on to play five seasons with the Boston Blades, serving as team captain, where she was also a member of the Canadian Women's Hockey League Players' Association (CWHLPA).

"Megan's work ethic and creative approach to coaching will make her a great asset to our program," said Watchorn. "She is constantly striving to learn and has a great knowledge of the game. Her genuine care for the players she coaches and the people around her elevates each environment she is a part of."