Episode 133: Alex Gettens, Head Coach of University of Maine Women's Ice Hockey

On today's episode we talk with Alex Gettens, the new head coach of the University of Maine women's ice hockey team and the eighth head coach in program history. Alex grew up in Concord, New Hampshire on the campus of St. Paul's School, and he is the first to tell you his playing career as a goalie was nothing to write home about. He was a career backup who started coaching at eighteen, and he explains how watching the game from the bench taught him to read people and team dynamics in a way that shaped him as a coach. We trace his path from volunteer and student assistant at Vermont, to a single season at Maine as an assistant working with the goaltenders during the most successful season in program history, back to Vermont for six seasons where he was promoted to associate head coach, and then two seasons at Colgate that helped the nationally ranked Raiders earn an at-large bid to the 2025 NCAA Tournament. Alex explains why he calls Maine the best kept secret in women's college hockey, what the renovated Alfond Arena and the university's investment in athletics mean for the program, and the up-tempo, aggressive style he wants his team to play. We also get into the new age-based five for five model and the squeeze it is putting on the class of 2028, what he looks for when he recruits, and his advice for families in the middle of the process right now: be proactive, own it for yourself, and remember that everyone's path is uniquely their own.

Follow Maine Women's Ice Hockey on X: @MaineWHockey and on Instagram: @mainewhockey

Learn more about Maine women's ice hockey: https://goblackbears.com/sports/womens-ice-hockey

Connect with Alex on Champs App: https://profile.champs.app/h/alex-gettens

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A ChampsEyeQ scout will be at the Pittsburgh girls tournament, September 4 to 6.

One of our ChampsEyeQ scouts will be there all weekend and can evaluate players live from their games.

Normally a family submits edited game video, which is the part most of them find hardest. Not this time. You tell us the player name, team and division, and jersey number. That is it.

What she gets: ✅ A 1 to 10 score on each of 18 attributes, with written reasoning behind every one ✅ Where she stands measured against what NCAA Division I programs look for ✅ The specific things to work on this season, and how to work on them

$75 per player. Skaters only. 14U, 16U and 19U.

Reserve a spot: https://sports.champs.app/champseyeq/laborday

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Champs App is your recruiting and development copilot. We help athletes, coaches, parents, and agents/advisors navigate the youth sports landscape. Create a free Champs App account to build a beautiful hockey profile and unlock free, high-quality content focused on recruiting and hockey player development.⁠⁠Download Champs App for iOS in the Apple App Store⁠⁠⁠⁠Download Champs App for Android in the Google Play Store⁠⁠

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Champs360 is the all-in-one recruiting and development copilot for players, parents, and coaches. It gives families the clarity and tools to navigate the recruiting process with less stress and more confidence.At its core, Champs360 brings everything together in one organized system. The College Search tool lets families filter and explore every school by size, location, admission scores and tuition. My Shortlist makes it easy to save and track the programs you care about, and for every school on your shortlist, the Team Dashboard delivers deep program intelligence: rosters, coaching staff, recruiting data, upcoming events, and school-specific articles and videos, all in one place.

Communication is central to recruiting, and Champs360 makes it faster and more professional. The Messaging Center, completely redesigned for this release, lets players email coaches directly, receive replies, schedule messages, send to multiple recipients, and save drafts, all from one organized dashboard.