Last week (July 8-11) Huskie women's hockey assistant coach Christine Bumstead joined the top prospects of the 2024 Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers at the club's development camp.

Bumstead, who is set to enter her fourth season on the Huskie bench in 2024-25, adds the experience to an impressive coaching resume, which includes coaching roles with the Saskatoon Blades, U18 Team Manitoba, Pembina Valley Hawks, Northwestern Hockey Sports Camp, and Winnipeg Jets Hockey Development.

Also included in her lengthy coaching experience is a graduation from the NHL Coaches Association Female Development Program. Her time spent in this program helped connect her with the Panthers during their Stanley Cup run.

"The organization reached out during the playoffs to see if I had interest in coming down for camp." Said Bumstead. "There were some other coaches in the past who were invited to different development camps across the league through BIPOC and other NHLCA programs, so this was an extension of that."

The development camp offered the unique opportunity to coach an eager group of future NHLers while also being exposed to new methods and approaches to coaching.

"Every time I go into any environment or opportunity, I'm looking to learn and take things away. Every coach and every organization does things differently, so seeing how they do it at their level was very cool.

"Sometimes it's specific drills that you see, or a certain approach to teaching a drill or skill that maybe I never thought of it that way before. Now, when I go back to coach my team, I can teach it that way and maybe connect with a player who wasn't understanding it before. It's always a learning experience, and this week I learned a lot both on and off the ice."

When asked about key takeaways from the week in South Florida, Bumstead reflected on the camp's theme of 'being brilliant at the basics and its importance as she looks ahead to the 2024-25 season with the Huskies.

"Whether at the university level or NHL, the basics are always involved, and you can't stray too far from them. I think it's a good message because you can get wrapped up in a season and thinking about the big picture, but at the end of the day, you must be brilliant at the basics to be successful, regardless of the system."

Since joining the Huskies coaching staff, Bumstead has helped the team to two top-6 national finishes, including a U SPORTS bronze medal in her first season behind the bench. 

Now, the Huskies and Bumstead look ahead to the 2024-25 season with training camp just around the corner. 

The Huskies officially return to the ice on October 4 in Regina before their home opener against the Cougars on Saturday, October 5. Click here for the full 2024-25 Huskie women's hockey schedule.