Women's Ice Hockey
- Title:
- Head Coach
Alex Gettens was named the eighth head coach in University of Maine women's ice hockey history on July 20, 2026.
Gettens returns to Orono with more than a decade of coaching experience, most recently serving as an assistant coach at Colgate University for the past two seasons where he helped guide the nationally ranked Raiders to an at-large berth in the 2025 NCAA Tournament. Prior to his time at Colgate, Gettens spent six seasons at Vermont, serving as an assistant coach before being promoted to associate head coach for the 2023-24 season.
While at Colgate, Gettens worked primarily with the forwards and goaltenders, coaching five All-ECAC selections over two seasons, including All-American forward and Patty Kazmaier Award Top-10 Finalist Kristyna Kaltounkova. He also coached six total PWHL draft picks, including the 2025 first overall selection Kaltounkova, as well as the first goaltender selected in the draft, Hannah Murphy. The 2024-25 season also saw Murphy set the single-season program record for wins with 26 while the Raiders won 30 games as a program and reached the ECAC Tournament Championship game.
During his six seasons at Vermont, Gettens helped recruit and develop the first two All-Americans in program history, the program’s first Patty Kazmaier Award Top-10 Finalist, two Hockey East Players of the Year and two Hockey East Rookies of the Year. Under his guidance, Theresa Schafzahl became the first Catamount to earn Hockey East Player of the Year honors and the program’s first Patty Kazmaier Award Top-10 Finalist in 2021-22, while Natalie Mlynkova became Vermont’s second Hockey East Player of the Year in 2023-24. During his time in Burlington, Vermont totaled 11 Hockey East all-conference selections and four All-Rookie honorees. In his final two seasons on staff, the Catamounts recorded back-to-back 22-win campaigns and scored more than 100 goals in each season, both program firsts. Four student-athletes that Gettens coached and recruited at Vermont have gone on to become PWHL draft picks. Gettens also served as acting head coach for five games during his tenure at Vermont, guiding the Catamounts to a 5-0 record in those contests.
Gettens is no stranger to Alfond Arena as he spent the 2017-18 season as an assistant coach at Maine, working primarily with the goaltenders. He helped develop Carly Jackson, who earned Hockey East All-Star Honorable Mention accolades after posting a league-best 1.88 goals against average. In his season in Orono, the Black Bears posted 19 wins – the most in program history – and earned the first Hockey East playoff victory in program history. Maine also appeared in the national rankings for the first time, climbing as high as No. 8 in the polls. Off the ice, Gettens was involved in all aspects of the Black Bear program, including practice planning, skill sessions, film sessions, pre-scout analysis and recruiting, while also coordinating the team's community service efforts.
The Concord, N.H. native began his coaching career in 2011 with the St. Paul's School girls' ice hockey team and eventually helped the squad to a New England Prep School Championship in 2015. He also gained collegiate hockey operations experience at Vermont, working with the men's program during the 2014-15 season while assisting the women's program from 2014-16. Additionally, he served as a student assistant goaltending coach for the Catamounts and also worked as an intern coach at USA Hockey U15 and U18 National Development Camps.
Gettens earned a bachelor of science degree in community entrepreneurship from the University of Vermont in 2017.
