Miami has solidified its coaching staff, retaining one of its assistants from the previous regime and adding two faces that are new to Miami but very familiar to coach Anthony Noreen.
Troy Thibodeau and David Nies — both of whom were assistants under Noreen at USHL Tri-City — join the RedHawks’ staff, and Noreen has chosen to retain Miami assistant Zack Cisek.
“It’s a staff I’m really excited about (that) I’m really proud to be able to be work with and alongside,” Noreen said.
Nies’ title is assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. He spent last season as assistant director of player personnel for the U.S. National Development Team and was an assistant under Noreen the two campaigns prior.
Thibodeau was named associate head coach, typically the title reserved for the primary assistant. He served as an assistant at Dartmouth the past three seasons and under Noreen the three years prior.
Cisek remains on as an assistant after holding that title the past two seasons with the RedHawks. He also spent two years as a graduate assistant for Miami in 2015-17.
Between Miami stints, he was an assistant at Notre Dame in 2017-18 and Lake Superior State from 2018 to 2022 — where his stock rose significantly — before returning to Oxford.
“I just think there’s a good mix, for sure, with different backgrounds and maybe different specialties as far as whether it’s the power play, penalty kill, goalies, forwards, D,” Noreen said. “I think they all bring a little different skill set, but the overarching theme in what I was going for is guys that are just good men number one, that are workers, and have a passion for developing players — having an ability to connect with players and having an ability to identify the type of players that are going to have success playing for us.”
“Those are the big three things, and I think all three guys have that, without a doubt. They’ve proven it in the past, and I think they’re excited to do it at Miami.
Although Nies’ title is recruiting coordinator, Noreen said all three assistants and himself will be fully involved in the all-important recruiting process that has largely eluded this program.
“Recruiting has become so competitive…I don’t want a staff where it’s the one guy that’s the recruiter or one guy that’s making all of the calls,” Noreen said. “We want it to be something where it’s all of us involved, and all of us creating relationships. Is it something that I’m going to take the lead on? Sure. But we want it where it’s our entire staff that’s capable and our entire staff wants to get after it recruiting-wise. It’s so important that I think you need that in this day and age.”
Cisek has been involved in Division I coaching for nearly a decade, but Nies and Thibodeau have held their assistant jobs in juniors, which is more about checking boxes in terms of coaching development.
Quite a capacious jump to similar positions in the toughest college hockey league on the planet.
Especially inheriting a fan base that has seen this program plummet from a national title birth in 2009 and being ranked in the top five as recently as nine years ago to the NCHC’s doormat, averaging seven wins the past five seasons and finishing an all-time league-worst 1-21-2 in NCHC play in 2023-24.
“Even though they’re relatively young guys, they’re three guys that have really paid their dues and have come up the hard way in coaching, and they’ve earned the right to be at this level,” Noreen said.
Noreen has said specific in-game coaching roles, such as who handles the power play, defensemen, etc., have not yet been solidified.
One striking similarity Noreen and all three of his assistants share is that none played a single game at the Division I level or above.
“I think it’s something that always on the surface is an expressive, absolutely,” Noreen said. “At the end of the day, (what’s) way more important: Your ability to recruit, your ability to connect with young student athletes, your ability to develop student athletes. That at the end of the day is what matters. You could be a Hall of Fame NHL player, but if you can’t do that, it’s not going to work as a coach. You could be a guy who played club hockey, and if you can do it as a coach, you’re going to have success.”
Cisek, a former goalie, was on Michigan State’s roster in 2013-14 and 2014-15 but did not log a minute of ice time with the Spartans.
Thibodeau and Nies — both forwards on the ice — were teammates for Division III Southern Maine in the early 2010s before joining Noreen in Tri-City.
“If it was the right guys, that had NHL experience or Division I experience, or was an alum, we would’ve been totally open to that too,” Noreen said. “It wasn’t by design, I just felt at the end of the day — as far as specific coaching — that these were the right guys.”
VFG will be writing more about each of the assistant coaches in the coming weeks.
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