Allison Park Photo
Abromaitis, Wallack and Camille at Monday’s announcement.
Kyle Wallack, the newly named head coach of Albertus Magnus’s soon-to-launch first-ever men’s hockey team, has a daunting task ahead of him: recruiting 30 players to the NCAA Division III team. So Wallack plans to put his extensive network to use to help him get Division I players to “slip through the cracks.”
On Monday, Albertus Magnus held a press conference at the Cosgrove Marcus Messer Athletics Center to introduce the Wallack as head coach of the Falcons, as well as to hear from President Dr. Marc M. Camille and Athletic Director Jim Abromaitis.
“I’m truly honored and humbled to be here today,” said Wallack. “It’s even more special when it’s the first time.”
A West Hartford native, Wallack boasts 18 years of coaching experience at D1 colleges across the country, making his way through Connecticut teams at Holy Cross, Quinnipiac, and Yale, to associate head coach of the University of Vermont’s Divison I Men’s Ice Hockey Team.
Wallack said one of the main reasons he accepted the position at Albertus Magnus was his excitement to “put my fingerprints on this and start from scratch.”
Wallack and his family.
In addition to coaching the Falcons, Coach Wallack and his staff will develop a “Learn to Skate” youth program for New Haveners at the soon-to-b-refurbished Walker Rink, where the Falcons will play.
“We’re really excited to get things rolling,” said Wallack. He said his business is “built on relationships” that he plans to tap to fill the team with well-deserving talent from around the country.
“The biggest thing right now is opportunity,” he said. With 30 spots available, Wallack said. he plans to entice students with all the available “ice time” — a big incentive for a “freshman who wants a chance to be on the lineup right away.” Wallack said he wants to brand the new Albertus Magnus College ice hockey recruiting class with “competitive people who want to be a part of something.”
Wallack has been using connections from his six years at the University of Vermont to deliver recruiting calls to “lots of really good hockey players” who didn’t get a spot in the limited 60 Division I programs. “There’s a lot of Division I players playing Division IIII hockey,” he said.
Wallack said that “the contacts you have is one of the bigger things” in finding success in the industry, and “having a network and using those relationships” has allowed him to discover the hidden golden nuggets during the recruiting process.
Camille.
President Camille said the school received “an incredible pool” full of “talented finalists” for the first head coach. Wallack “immediately separated himself” with an application that outlined the importance of attitude and gratitude in the classroom, Camille said.
“[We] want to hire someone who understands the importance of gratitude in our lives, and the importance of the student athlete model,” said Camille.
Abromaitis.
“I know we got the right guy,” echoed Abromaitis. Albertus vetted 120 applicants in all.
