It was a busy week for the Cardiff Devils, who shook up their technical staff with the arrival of assistant coach Christian Horn.
The 29-year-old, a former teammate of head coach Brodie Dupont, played five seasons in the ECHL before hanging up his skates after the 2020-21 campaign. He spent the year after his retirement working in multinational logistics and searching for an opportunity to return to the sport in a coaching role.
“Christian has pro experience as a player and has learned the game under some of the best coaches around. I played with him so I know what kind of person he is, and I know he will bring a great work ethic and attention to detail to the role,” explained Dupont.
“He wanted to get into coaching when he finished playing and has spent summers working as a skills coach with young players, elite under 16s, for the last few years.”
Horn’s appointment means that former assistant coach Neil Francis moves upstairs to become Cardiff’s director of hockey operations. He will remain on the bench for home fixtures and continue to be involved in player recruitment and talent evaluation.
Neil Francis (left) played an integral role in Cardiff’s playoff triumph last season (Image: James Assinder)
“Franny was stretched pretty thin last season as he moved back onto the bench while still working full-time outside of hockey,” explained Devils managing director Todd Kelman. “This season he explained he cannot do the same as last year. He remains part of the coaching staff but will also be the Director of Hockey Operations for the Devils, which means he will continue to help Brodie with player recruitment and ongoing assessment as well as monitor the two-way players in Bristol and Telford.”
When asked about Horn, he added: “We actually hired him back in July and he was meant to be here for the start of training camp, but the paperwork that would normally take three weeks took eight weeks.
“He will be a huge help to our staff. Brodie is doing everything right now in terms of video prep and practice plans and it was important for us to have a full-time assistant coach this year that can help with the workload. We are really excited to finally have Christian here and I know he is going to be a massive help for Brodie.”
Christian Horn, formerly of the Utah Grizzlies (Image: ECHL)
Horn experienced a topsy-turvy first weekend behind the bench, debuting in an emphatic win over the Glasgow Clan before watching his new club lose to the Guildford Flames the following evening.
Elsewhere in the Elite League, the Coventry Blaze continued their hot start to the season, picking up three points from the Flames and Fife Flyers. Adam Keefe’s Belfast Giants won back-to-back (again), punching their ticket to the knockout rounds of the Challenge Cup.
In the National League, the Leeds Knights beat the Peterborough Phantoms twice, with the Basingstoke Bison repeating the trick versus the Swindon Wildcats.
Christian Horn debuts as an assistant coach in week three of the Elite League season:
Wednesday, 21 September 2022
- Manchester Storm 3-6 Guildford Flames
Thursday, 22 September 2022
- Glasgow Clan 0-3 Sheffield Steelers
Saturday, 24 September 2022
- Challenge Cup: Guildford Flames 3-2 Coventry Blaze (OT)
- Challenge Cup: Belfast Giants 5-4 Dundee Stars (OT)
- Fife Flyers 1-5 Manchester Storm
- Cardiff Devils 6-3 Glasgow Clan
Christian Horn, Cardiff Devils (Image: Cardiff Devils)
Sunday, 25 September 2022
- Challenge Cup: Cardiff Devils 1-3 Guildford Flames
- Challenge Cup: Nottingham Panthers 3-2 Sheffield Steelers (OT)
- Challenge Cup: Dundee Stars 1-4 Belfast Giants
- Coventry Blaze 3-2 Fife Flyers
- Manchester Storm 6-3 Glasgow Clan
National League, Week Two:
Friday, 23 September 2022
- Swindon Wildcats 2-6 Basingstoke Bison
Saturday, 24 September 2022
- Basingstoke Bison 7-4 Swindon Wildcats
- Leeds Knights 5-2 Peterborough Phantoms
- Milton Keynes Lightning 2-1 Bees IHC
- Sheffield Steeldogs 4-3 Raiders IHC (SO)
- Telford Tigers 4-2 Hull Seahawks
Sunday, 25 September
- Bees IHC P-P Swindon Wildcats
- Bristol Pitbulls 2-3 Milton Keynes Lightning
- Hull Seahawks 2-3 Telford Tigers
- Peterborough Phantoms 4-7 Leeds Knights
- Raiders IHC 1-5 Sheffield Steeldogs
How will Christian Horn fare in Cardiff? Join the conversation by tweeting @BritIceHockey.
