Army West Point Athletics
Taylor Ward Joins Hockey Staff as Assistant Coach
September 13, 2023 | Hockey
WEST POINT, NY - Army West Point hockey and head coach Brian Riley have announced the addition of Taylor Ward as an assistant coach, rounding out the coaching staff ahead of the 2023-24 season.
Ward comes to West Point after spending the past two years as the U18 development director with MAP South Hockey in Mendota Heights, Minnesota. MAP South provides athletes with an all-encompassing support system to grow their individual development in a healthy & competitive environment through game tactics, strength & conditioning and individualized mentorship. With MAP South, Ward planned and executed on-ice skill development at U16 and U18 levels. Ward also served as the MAP Academy Director and as a mental performance coach for athletes.
"We are very excited to add Taylor to our staff. He has a great deal of coaching experience that will no doubt have a positive impact on our program." - head coach Brian Riley.
Prior to MAP South, Ward spent time on the bench in the USHL as an assistant coach with the Waterloo Black Hawks for two seasons (2019-2021). Ward was the defensive/PK coach while also serving as the team's video coach and travel coordinator. The Black Hawks saw success with Ward, with the team posting a 33-14 record in his first season before the season was cut short due to COVID.
The Black Hawks were not Ward's first stint in the junior hockey coaching ranks, having spent the previous two seasons on the bench as well. In 2018-19, he served as the head coach for the Skipjacks Hockey Club in the United States Premier Hockey League (USPHL). The York, Pennsylvania-based team ended up with a 29-11-2 record in the regular season with Ward at the helm. The season prior, Ward was an assistant coach with the Sioux City Musketeers in the USHL, also serving as the video and travel coordinator. In the summer of 2017, Ward was also on staff with the Coulee Region Chill in the North American Hockey Leaguew (NAHL) as an assistant coach.Â
Ward was a standout player at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire from 2012-14, helping the Blugolds win the 2013 Division III National Championship. Ward then transitioned to an assistant coaching role with the women's hockey team at UW-EC, serving as the defensive/PK coach and video coordinator for the Lady Blugolds. The program saw a tremendous turnaround with Ward on staff, going from a 5-21-1 record in 2014-15 to an 18-9-1 mark in 2016-17 which saw them ranked in the top-ten nationally.Â
Ward graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire in 2017 with a bachelor's degree in communications and a minor in leadership with a coaching emphasis.