Feature: Going Dutch

The following feature article on Union head coach Claudia Asano appeared September 25 on the USA Hockey Web site. The article can be accessed via the USA Hockey Web site by clicking here. 

By Mike Scandura
Special to usahockey.com

Claudia Asano, who's in her first season as the Union College women's hockey coach, is quick to admit the fortuitous set of circumstances that led to a career in a sport she didn't start playing until she was 14.

Asano, a native of Concord, Mass., is a 1999 alumnus of Harvard, where she captained the team as a senior -- when the Crimson won the ECACHL regular-season and tournament titles.

She was also an assistant to Harvard's legendary head coach, Katey Stone, over the past five seasons.

While at Harvard, Asano recruited future Olympians, including Caitlin Cahow (Short Beach, Conn.) and helped lead the Crimson to three consecutive Frozen Fours.

And she's coached at three development camps for USA Hockey: the 2003 and 2006 Girls' Select 14 camps in Rochester, N.Y. and the 2007 Girls' Select 15 camp at St. Cloud, Minn.

But all of this might have been a dream were it not for a chance conversation with a friend from Concord, Laurie Baker Mutch, who played on the 1998 U.S. Olympic Women's Team that won gold in Nagano, Japan.

"Initially, I was a figure skater," said Asano. "I started playing hockey because figure skating had too much of a time constraint. I would have had to miss too much school. Laurie Baker told me about the Assabet Valley Program. I always could skate, but I had to pick up the idea of the game.

"The combination of Assabet getting me into the sport is what got me to go to prep school, followed by getting into a good college and into coaching. Otherwise, that might not have been the case."

Asano, the third-oldest in a family of four, didn't grow up in a hockey family. But the work ethic imbued in her by her parents, Shintaro, a Japanese immigrant, and her late mother, Belinda, gave her a solid foundation -- which proved to be extremely beneficial in the long run.

"My dad, who's 73, was a very-motivated, hard-working person," Asano said. "Mom died when I was coaching at Harvard. She was incredibly motivated."

Asano put herself through college.

"They had four kids and had to keep us busy. And mom knew that I loved [sports]."

What Asano didn't love were the mind-numbing job interviews following graduation from Harvard.

"I first looked at consulting jobs and banking because that's what Harvard graduates do," said Asano. "But, during interviews, I realized it wasn't for me."

Asano became the associate director of athletics at Middlesex School in Concord, Mass., where she wore five hats. In addition to her administrative responsibilities, she taught European history and was the head junior varsity women's lacrosse coach, plus the assistant coach for varsity field hockey and ice hockey.

Other than that ...

Enter Johanna Boynton, a Harvard alumnus who at the time worked in the school's athletic department.

"She offered me a job as an assistant coach with the women's team," said Asano, "and was very instrumental in my getting a job."

Besides Xs and Os and recruiting, Asano essentially received a five-year tutorial from Stone, one of the all-time winningest coaches in the history of women's hockey.

"Katey works really hard and expects nothing less from her players," said Asano.

"It's hard, but that's the way our team worked. She created an atmosphere where work ethic always was No. 1. It wasn't talent. As you worked, you got more credibility. The hardest workers got the most.

"Plus, she brought us all together. We worked our butts off. Going to Harvard would have been hard, but she gave me an opportunity to go there. Every year, we had better and better years on and off the ice."

Asano has also had those three very enjoyable years with USA Hockey's Select camps.

"They give so much to the kids and so much to the coaches," she said. "You feel like you're working for USA Hockey, which, to me is the ultimate goal, because you want to work for your country.

"It's a long week, but you get to give to kids who may not have had good coaching at home. And you get to work with kids who are motivated. You wear the apparel and you feel like you're part of the development of the future. It recharges you and motivates you."

Recharging and motivating the Dutchmen will be a major challenge for Asano, considering Union has been in the bottom half of the ECACHL in recent years -- and light years away from the likes of Harvard, which has postseason games virtually printed on its schedule cards.

"The biggest challenge is the reputation," said Asano. "Everyone always assumed Union wasn't very good. You must make them feel it's better than it's been.

"As for recruits, you must let them know change is going to happen but it's not going to happen overnight. Mentally and physically, it will happen. But we don't have the mindset yet that we're going to be someone to challenge."

At present, Asano understands that her resumen, impressive though it may be, is merely that. Games are won on the ice and not based on a coach's reputation.

"You can ride on your laurels, but the minute you think you're going to be alright, you won't be," said Asano, quite matter-of-factly. "I've got to get kids here and change what's here. Then I'll feel like we're changing the mindset."

Story courtesy Red Line Editorial.