When Hockey Canada needed a coach for its womens hockey team less than two months before the Sochi Olympics, Kevin Dineen stepped up. Not long after he won gold, the phone rang again for a job leading the under-18 mens team. "One call to him at the under-18 level, he just said yes right away," Hockey Canadas Scott Salmond said. On Monday, Dineen began the next chapter of his coaching career as he was named as an assistant on Joel Quennevilles staff with the Chicago Blackhawks. "He doesnt care if hes coaching women or men or kids or what it is. Hes a coach, and thats what he loves to do," Salmond said in a phone interview. "To me, great coaches like challenges and they want to coach, they want to be busy, they want to work and Kevins a great example of that. It wasnt a surprise to me that someone in an organization like Chicago would recognize that and his value and what hell bring there." The Toronto native will return to the NHL less than a year after being fired as head coach of the Florida Panthers, armed with plenty of international experience. Salmond, Hockey Canadas senior director of hockey operations and national teams, enjoyed how much energy and passion Dineen put into his work with the national womens and under-18 mens teams, even though he had no previous connection to either. "I think that the players realized right away that he cares," Salmond said. "He really cares about them. And one thing he talked about with the under-18s the whole time was just trying to make them better and trying to have them leave with something. And yeah we wanted to have team success, but if they could gain something from the experience, then that was great." From those experiences, Salmond expects Dineen to be an even stronger coach as he returns to dealing with professionals with the Blackhawks. "I know he spent a lot of time one-on-one both with the women and the men and communicating with them and sharing ideas and having them buy in and share their ideas as well," Salmond said. "The communication side, I think, is huge. Good coaches have that, and certainly its a strength for him." Dineen conceded in Sochi that he was learning on the fly how to communicate differently with women than he did men in previous jobs, joking that he wasnt using the F-word nearly as much. He was not made available by the Blackhawks, who have a policy of not allowing assistant coaches to speak to reporters. Dineen wrote on Twitter that he was "excited about the opportunity to work with this group of people. World class players and organization." The 50-year-old replaces Jamie Kompon, who became general manager and coach of the WHLs Portland Winterhawks, filling the void left by Mike Johnston when he took the head-coaching job in Pittsburgh. "I am thrilled to join Joel Quenneville, a future hall of fame coach, and (assistant) Mike Kitchen, as we strive to reach the ultimate goal in professional hockey," Dineen said in a statement released by the Blackhawks. "The measure of success is very high in Chicago. I look forward to supporting the coaching staff and working with some of the best players in the National Hockey League." During his playing days, Dineen spent time as a linemate of Quennevilles with the Hartford Whalers. In total he played 1,188 NHL games, finishing with 355 goals and 405 assists. "Kevin brings proven leadership qualities, having served as an alternate captain and captain for several of his teams during his 19-year NHL career," Chicago general manager Stan Bowman said in a statement. "He will bring another well respected voice to our coaching staff and we look forward to his contributions to our team." Dineen represented Canada in international competition six times as a player, including the 1984 Olympics and 1987 Canada Cup. He only added to his international resume with his most recent international coaching jobs, and Salmond called Dineen "a great friend to Hockey Canada." Salmond credited Dineen for changing "a bit of the culture" with the womens team after taking over for Dan Church, who resigned in December, and capturing the nations attention with the gold-medal run. With the under-18 mens team, which won a bronze medal, Salmond said Dineen did a fantastic job by helping Canada play to a level it hadnt reached in recent years. "I think we are very grateful for what he was able to bring," Salmond said. "Hes obviously a professional, a former professional player and I think he brings that kind of mentality to coaching. He was great for our program, kind of gave us another perspective and helped us with some things both on the womens side and on the mens side that hell leave behind." Dineen coached the AHLs Portland Pirates for six years before taking over the Panthers. Florida made the playoffs in one of his two full seasons behind the bench, and Dineen was fired 16 games into 2013-14. USA Soccer Jerseys 2019 . Wheeler said Kane was just making a joke that was misunderstood and misinterpreted by "Winnipeg folks" and the media once again. Wheeler repeated that he believes Kane is a player who has the ability to help the Jets get to the next level as they try once again to reach the playoffs in 2014. He made the comments initially in an interview, when asked how the Jets could compete in the Central Division with teams that have made some high-profile off-season signings. USA Soccer Shirts . It was the most lopsided loss in Lakers history. Darren Collison had a team-high 24 points while starting at shooting guard for the injured Jamal Crawford. Chris Paul added 13 points and 11 assists for the Clippers, who apparently are trying to make up for decades of humiliation at the hands of the Lakers all in one season; theyve won the last two meetings by a combined 84 points. https://www.cheapusasoccer.com/. -- Canadas Milos Raonic defeated Edouard Roger-Vasselin of France on Saturday to advance to the third round of the BNP Paribas Open. Stitched USA Soccer Jerseys . The Spanish champions decision not to sign a defender during the January transfer window may have backfired after Valencia took advantage of a lethargic, uninspired effort by its hosts at the Camp Nou, where former Spain coach Luis Aragones -- who previously coached the Catalan side -- was honoured after his death on Saturday. USA Soccer Store . Gerald Green and Miles Plumlee? Green had bounced around the NBA when he wasnt playing overseas. The Pacers gave up on Plumlee after just one season. Now Green and Plumlee are key cogs in the Suns surprising breakout season.PINEHURST, N.C. -- Pinehursts No. 2 course will be set up the same way for both U.S. Open and U.S. Womens Open this year. U.S. Golf Association Executive Director Mike Davis said Saturday that the par-70 course will play at about 7,500 yards for the mens and about 6,700 yards for the women. "On a given hole, if the men are hitting drivers, we want to see the women hit drivers," he said during the USGAs annual meeting. "If the men are hitting 6- to 8-irons for approach shots, thats what we want to see the women do." The USGA is roughly four months away from its first-of-its-kind doubleheader: The mens event is June 12-15 with the womens tournament the following week. "While we want to test the same things for both championships, there are differences in how men and women play the game," Davis said. Davis says the USGAs reason for going back-to-back was to bring more attention to the womens game. "This was never about trying to make it operationally easier or save money," Davis said. "This was all about comparing the worlds best men with the worlds best women." He says the women are playing the second week -- and not the first -- because of agronomics. "We had a much better chance of getting the golf course right for both championships" with the women playing second, he said. "It really gets down to the putting greens. The first week, if Mother Nature is co-operative, theyre going to be slightly firmer. ... Very firm greens to slightly -- undersccore, slightly -- less firm greens that second week.dddddddddddd And agronomically, it was much easier to do the second week than the first." The 107-year-old, Donald Ross-designed course underwent a $2.5 million renovation in 2010-11. The face-lift, led by Ben Crenshaw and Bill Coore, was designed to restore some of its original elements in plenty of time for the two opens -- including removing all traces of rough. With so much foot traffic expected on the course during the doubleheader, divots are inevitable -- especially during the second week. But Davis says the Bermuda grass isnt as divot-prone as bent grass, and says they will be filled with sand. "I think our view is (divots are) just part of the game," he said. Davis says the USGA wants to blend the two opens together, in a way -- perhaps by having some womens players show up in the TV booth on the 18th green to break down the mens play. "While theyre clearly two different championships, were looking at it as one big event," Davis said. "This is really a chance, on the same golf course, to test the worlds best." Also, Thomas J. OToole Jr. was elected as USGAs 63rd president. The 56-year-old OToole, from St. Louis, will serve a one-year term. "It is an honour and a privilege to lead such a noble organization," OToole said. "I am excited and energized to continue my service to the association and keenly aware of the magnitude of the profound responsibilities that accompany this role." ' ' '