MINSK, Belarus – Former Washington Capitals head coach Glen Hanlon is back on the coaching staff of Team Belarus. The Canada-born American is adored in the Eastern European country, having brought Belarus hockey a step forward.

Belarus had already signed Hanlon one time, for the 2005 Worlds in Austria, while he was also coaching the Washington Capitals. Before, he was also on the coaching staff of Team Canada. Freshly-promoted Belarus finished tenth and one year later, at the 2006 World championship in Latvia, Hanlon achieved the sixth place – the best result ever for the Belarusians at the World Championship. The 2006-2007 season, Hanlon had to reject the offer to be fully focussed on his NHL team and recommended his compatriot Curt Frazer, who lead Team Belarus to eleventh place at the 2007 Worlds in Russia.

Now, since Hanlon was released by Washington in November, the 50-year-old will return to Belarus’ national squad as the assistant coach of Frazer. Hanlon will go to Moscow on January 25 for the Russian Superliga game MVD Balashikha vs. Metallurg Magnitogorsk to speak with Metallurg’s Belarusian goalkeeper Andrei Mezin. On January 29, he will arrive in Minsk to work with the team at the Polesya Cup in Gomel and Zhlobin.