On Thursday, May 29th, Erik Strand announced that he would be stepping down as the head coach for the women’s ice hockey team at UW-Eau Claire. He will be taking on an assistant coaching role with the women’s program at the University of Vermont in Division I. A graduate of UWEC in 2002, Strand took over the Blugolds’ bench in the 2015-2016 season after eight seasons as an assistant coach. The Blugolds posted a 183-68-17 record (.628) during his tenure claiming a #WIAC regular season title in 2019 and two O’Brien Cups in 2018 & 2019. They qualified to the #NCAA National Tournament four times while six players earned All-American honors and three winning the conference player of the year award. A four-year player for the Blugolds after two seasons in the #USHL, Strand dressed in 106 games while putting together 19 goals and 28 assists for 47 points. A national search for the third head coach in program history is underway. H/T: uwecblugolds #NCAAHockey | #D3hky