Coventry Blaze Ice Hockey team have confirmed that Marc LeFebvre will be the team’s head coach for the 2014/15 season.
LeFebvre took over in mid-February after the sacking of Matt Soderstrom and will now be given the chance to build his own team following a disappointing season for the club on the ice.
Blaze chairman Andy Buxton said to his club’s website: "We went through a lengthy and thorough process before arriving at the decision to appoint Marc. We interviewed a short-list of five candidates and after weighing up all of the options we decided Marc is the right man to take us forward at this time.
"We’ve been very impressed with the way he has gone about his business since joining us in February. He is thorough, well prepared and very knowledgeable. Very importantly he really wants to be here. He doesn’t just want to be a head coach, he wants to be the head coach of Coventry Blaze.
"He has a great plan for how we need to move forward on the ice and he strongly believes he can build a team that everyone connected with the club will be proud of. He has plans for how we can improve all aspects of our on ice performance and preparation.
"We all believe that to be successful in this league you have to understand the league. Most of the people who have coached in the Elite League have come from within.
"A coach here has to be a great all-rounder – a good coach but a good recruiter and man-manager too. All of those things are so important and we believe Marc has all those qualities through his time as a head coach in North America, working with the Steelers and since joining us. He is very well connected. A number of last season’s players have told us how much they learned from him in such a short time.
"He’s only been coaching Blaze for a short time but you can already see the passion he has for the club. A huge number of our supporters saw that and we’ve been overwhelmed with messages saying they would love to see him given the chance to build his own squad and lead this team next season.
"We’d like to thank all of the other people who were interested in our club and we want to wish Marc all the very best as he looks to lead us into the 2014/15 season."