Greenwood promoted to become first woman assistant coach in OJHL’s men’s division in Canada

Gallery: (6-2-2025) Chelsey Greenwood Liberty Hockey

Former Liberty University women's hockey forward Chelsey Greenwood — who played on the Lady Flames' first two ACHA Division I National Championship teams as a freshman in 2015 and a senior in 2018 — recently signed a contract to serve as an assistant coach with the Junior "A" Tier II Lindsay (Ontario) Muskies of the Ontario Junior Hockey League for the 2025-26 season, becoming the first female coach in the OJHL.

Chelsey Greenwood Liberty women's hockey mug

"I am super, super grateful and appreciative that they're even giving me this opportunity," she said. "I've always dreamed of being the first at something, and I am grateful God gave me the chance to do something like this."

The Muskies, coached by Brendan O'Grady, lauded Greenwood's hockey prowess on its social media sites, stating: "Chelsey brings a wealth of knowledge and experience both as a player and a coach. As a player, she has a winning pedigree and a passion for the game. Coaching, she is a true hockey nerd who lives and breathes the game. She will bring new insights to the pond … Our players are going to benefit greatly."

Influenced by Lady Flames Head Coaches Paul Bloomfield, who recruited her and coached her for the first three seasons, and Chris Lowes who coached the Flames' DII men's team for eight seasons before taking the helm from Bloomfield in 2017, Greenfield got into coaching soon after graduating, starting with a girls team in her hometown of Brampton.

"Paul Bloomfield is the reason I even went to Liberty," Greenwood said. "I'm only 5-feet tall, and I tore my ACL in grade 12 and wasn't sure where I was going to go to play. He took a chance on me as a player, and he did a really good job of pouring into us as hockey players and as young women."

"Lowes and his hockey mind, the way he had just come from the men's side to the women's side and was able to adjust to that situation (inspired me)," she added. "He has really good systems and ideas, and he's one of the best there ever was at Liberty and his winning pedigree speaks to that."

Cheryl Pounder Chelsey Greenwood — Cheryl Pounder, a two-time gold medalist with Team Canada, was Greenwood's coaching mentor at Brampton.

Since graduating from Liberty, Greenwood has been able to learn from other coaches, including Cheryl Pounder, a former defenseman and two-time gold medalist on the Canadian Olympic team.

"She has been a coaching mentor and a really good friend," Greenwood said, noting Reagan O'Grady, Lindsay's director of player development and son of its head coach, is another.

Last season, Greenwood took on the head coaching role with the Mississauga Hurricanes U18 AA women's team while serving as a scout and special advisor with the Muskies. She is going to continue to work with both teams this season, with greater degrees of responsibility.

"This year is going to be crazy, but it's an opportunity in my coaching career that at this time I couldn't really say 'No' to," Greenwood said. "I just love coaching. It's my way to stay involved in the game and I enjoy learning from other coaches and other players. I don't mind (coaching both women and men) because it helps to give me a different lens and perspective and makes me a better coach, and better at bench management."
Offering equal doses of constructive criticism and encouragement to her players is one of her primary giftings as a coach, especially in her role with the Muskies.

"My superpower this year is going to be my communication piece, providing individual feedback with players in games and practices, and also helping out with special teams," Greenwood said. "I like coaching this age because you can still change things in a one-percent positive way that's going to make a big difference long-term."

She acknowledges the steep learning curve of coaching a men's team from a women's perspective.

"Girls' and boys' hockey are very different, like two altogether different games," Greenwood said. "My brother played in the OJHL, so I've been watching him for years. There's still going to be lots of new challenges and I'm just excited to hit the ground running, to continue to learn and to use some of my experience and communication with players to push them to get the best out of them. When a player enjoys playing for a coach, you're going to get a lot more out of them. You are able to push them a little further, and in tough situations, they're going to give you what they've got."

As a player, Greenwood was an excellent skater known for her drive to get to the net to put away plenty of putbacks and "garbage goals." She doesn't want to develop forwards who play that way, necessarily, but to sharpen their skill sets to make them the best they can be.

"At this age, they all have their own style of play, and my job is to elevate what they do best," Greenwood said. "If they're a playmaker, or a skater, they need a little bit of everything and then finding ways to put all of those pieces together."

The spiritual foundation she received at Liberty has given Greenwood confidence as she enters new territory in her coaching career.

"If anything, my walk with the Lord is even stronger now because it's all literally in His hands," she said. "I couldn't thank Liberty enough, with the mindset of literally building Champions for Christ. There's nowhere else where I would have been able to go to church with my hockey team and to pray for a teammate, or offer praise when things were going well. Coach Bloomfield was a huge piece of that as well. I'm taking a step of faith and hoping to be a light for Him in any way that I can, with a lot of prayer and support."

By Ted Allen/Staff Writer

Chelsey Greenwood coaches from bench — Greenwood addresses her Mississauga U-18 women's team from the bench. (Photo courtesy of Kaptured.ByKobo)

Greenwood promoted to become first woman assistant coach in OJHL’s men’s division in Canada

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