Union assistant men’s coach Childs steps down, heading back to junior hockey as new head coach of USHL’s Lancers

Lennie Childs spent two seasons as an assistant coach with Union (photo: Dominique Del Prete).

After two seasons as an assistant coach for the Union men’s hockey team, Lennie Childs has stepped down to accept the head coach position for the USHL’s Omaha Lancers.

“My time at Union College was nothing short of tremendous,” said Childs in a statement. I thank Coach (Josh) Hauge for giving me the opportunity to grow and work with highly dedicated players every day. My family and I are excited and honored to be named the next head coach of the Omaha Lancers. It is a blue blood program in the USHL with a tradition of developing top young talent.”

Childs helped guide Union to a 30-37-5 record in his two seasons on the bench, which included two first-round home ECAC Hockey playoff games and a trip to the conference quarterfinals this season.

“I want to thank Lennie for everything he contributed to our program,” said Hauge. “We really enjoyed working with him and the energy he brought to the rink every day. We look forward to watching his coaching journey and wish him and his family the best in Omaha.”

Before coming to Schenectady, Childs served as an assistant coach with the USHL’s Des Moines Buccaneers where he primarily led player development, the penalty kill units, and offensive zone production.

Prior to his time with the Buccaneers, Childs spent two seasons with the NAHL’s Janesville Jets as an assistant coach before being promoted to associate head coach in his third season. In addition to player development and working with the defense, he was responsible for camps, recruiting, and the day-to-day operations of the team. Under his coaching, the Jets had one of the best defensive cores in the NAHL, with the second-ranked penalty kill in the 2020-21 season.

During the 2017-18 season, Childs served as the head coach for the USPHL’s Skipjacks Hockey Club where he guided the team to a 27-10-7 record.

Childs played four years of collegiate hockey at Concordia-Wisconsin where he graduated in 2016 with a degree in marketing.

A search for a new assistant coach will begin immediately.