Syracuse names Brian Idalski new women's hockey coach
Syracuse hired Brian Idalski to push its women’s hockey program past semifinal runs and into a higher competitive tier. He arrives with 25 years of head coaching experience and more than 400 wins.
Syracuse announced Brian Idalski as its new women’s ice hockey head coach on July 14 at 9:15 a.m., turning to a veteran builder with 25 years of head coaching experience across NCAA Division I, the PWHL and international hockey. The hire gives Syracuse University its third coach in program history and signals a clear attempt to move the Orange from a young, improving team into a program that expects to contend more regularly in Atlantic Hockey America.
Idalski comes to Syracuse after spending the 2025-26 season behind the bench of the PWHL Vancouver Goldeneyes and coaching the Czechia women’s national team. Syracuse said he brings more than 400 collegiate and professional victories and a career winning percentage above 62 percent, along with experience developing elite players at every level of the sport.
The résumé Syracuse cited goes well beyond wins. The university said Idalski has mentored 10 Olympians, 35 national team players, nine All-Americans, 20 U18 national team athletes, one Patty Kazmaier finalist, four Patty Kazmaier semifinalists, one conference player of the year and 42 all-conference selections. At St. Cloud State University, his last collegiate stop, Syracuse said he engineered a historic turnaround and won the 2022-23 USCHO National Coach of the Year award.
The move comes as Britni Smith exits after a three-year run in Syracuse. Smith, hired in May 2022, said on April 23 that she would not renew her contract so she could spend more time with family. Syracuse said she led the Orange to the Atlantic Hockey America Tournament semifinals in each of her last two seasons and helped players earn academic and awards recognition during her tenure.
For Syracuse, the hiring is about where the program goes next. Women’s hockey joined College Hockey America in the 2008-09 season and later moved into Atlantic Hockey America after CHA merged into the new league. The Orange has been competitive enough to reach the league semifinals twice under Smith, but the university’s choice of a coach with international experience and a track record of turnarounds suggests a higher bar for the next two to three seasons: more than staying relevant in the league, Syracuse wants to build toward a team that can push deeper into conference contention and raise its national profile.
Athletics director Bryan B. Blair said the university was excited to welcome Idalski, his wife Nicole and their sons to Syracuse, calling him a proven program-builder who wins at every level and develops student-athletes who succeed in the classroom and beyond.
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