NEWS: Neilson keen to make his mark on Clan

New Aspray Glasgow West sponsored Glasgow Clan head coach Corey Neilson says he’s looking forward to putting his own stamp on a team again.

The former Nottingham Panthers coach has taken over from Jason Morgan after a disappointing campaign where the team ended up at the bottom of the Elite League.

And the multiple trophy winner is already plotting a way back for the Clan in 2024-25 when it begins later in the year.

“Since I was last with the Panthers I haven’t been able to have any impact on my player roster and I know the head coach gets that in Glasgow,” he revealed.

“It’s been like going to the grocery store, looking and the cashier handing you a bag full of goods that you didn’t pick and asking you pay for it.  It’s been hard.

“In terms of players, I’m looking into finding great people.  Everything starts with good people and those who can emotionally handle the highs and lows of a tough schedule.

“But the off-ice portion of the Clan is focused on details and the resources have impressed me in our talks so I look forward to making sure the on-ice product doesn’t disappoint.

“My preferred style of play hasn’t changed.  We want to play with an incredible amount of pace, we want to be organised, and we want to show a ferocious amount of competitiveness.”

Since initially leaving the Panthers in 2018, Neilson has been on something of a coaching odyssey, working in Norway, Slovakia, but primarily in Germany in the DEL2.

Now he’s looking forward to putting what he’s learned on the continent into practice in the Elite League.

He added: “It has been a great learning experience, coaching a lot of different styles in Europe and managing a mixed bag of strength within my teams.

“It has really forced me to round out my coaching game and honing my details in terms of the defensive zone and penalty killing.

“But the challenge is to build a team that has the potential to be great at both ends of the ice and I love a challenge.”