The University of Cincinnati Bearcats have named Taylor Ley as the new head coach of the ACHA Division II club.  Ley, 27, played club hockey at Miami where he was named First-Team All-American as the RedHawks had a runner-up showing at the 2016 National Tournament played in his native West Chester, PA.

Ley went on to coach for both the women’s and men’s ACHA teams at Miami, including a stint as the head coach of the men’s DII team, in addition to coaching in the Miami youth hockey ranks.

He is looking forward to the opportunity behind the Cincinnati bench.

“We want to continue to build upon the recent success of the team,” said Ley.  “The growth that we have seen over the last few years has been huge and we just want to continue to build that and continue that momentum moving forward so we can be a powerhouse for years to come.”

Despite the current COVID-19 pandemic, Ley is holding out hope that the 2020-21 season can go on as planned. 

“With all of the Covid concerns we just want to make sure we do what is right for our players,” he said.  “We are going to listen to the University and the ACHA, and if things go to plan we will start on time in August with tryouts.”

It is still possible that the Bearcats can play a full schedule next year.

“We are planning to keep all of our games as scheduled,” Ley said.  “But if changes need to be made, we will make them as necessary.”

The Bearcats also announced that Nick Okada will remain as an assistant coach.  It will be his second season as an assistant and fifth year overall with the program after a stellar three-year paying career.

As a player, Okada was a prolific puck-moving defenseman for UC, with single-season assist totals of 89, in 2016-17, and 77, in 2017-18.  His 230 career points in just 90 games place him third in program history and first among blue liners.

Read more in the team press release.

--- Scott Harrington for Ohio Hockey Digest