On Sept. 1, Dartmouth women’s hockey introduced their newest assistant coach, Katie Kotlowski. After a successful career as a defender at the University of Wisconsin, winning three national championships in six seasons, Kotlowski made the shift to coaching. Coming back to Division I college hockey behind the bench is the culmination of hard work and lessons learned throughout her time as a player.
After graduating from Wisconsin in 2025, Kotlowski was looking for something to provide the routine and structure that she had as a player. “Right out of college, I got a master’s [degree] in sports leadership, so I knew I always wanted to coach. I didn’t know it was going to be this soon,” she told The Ice Garden.
In November 2025, Kotlowski joined the staff at Marian University, a DIII college in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, as an assistant coach. She quickly established herself as defensive coordinator, working on player development, video review, and practice agendas. The 2025-26 season was Marian’s most successful in program history, but it was just as influential for Kotlowski. Of coaching for the Sabres, she said, “It brought my drive back into finding my purpose on the ice.”
Now fully invested in coaching, Kotlowski set her sights on returning to the DI level where she spent her playing career. When she was looking for coaching jobs at the end of May and saw Dartmouth was hiring, applying was a no-brainer. “Having that opportunity to take that next step was, in a sense, a sign. It wasn’t going to be easy, but I love a good challenge.” After interviewing with head coach Maura Crowell and her staff, Kotlowski was offered the assistant coach position, for which she said she was “super grateful.”
It was a quick turnaround. Kotlowski joined Dartmouth in early September, just over a month before the Big Green’s first game of the 2026-27 season. Kotlowski has spent much of this time learning all she can from her new colleagues. “We all work together really well, and I think they’re a really great group to learn from and grow with,” she said of the coaching staff. As a former defender, Kotlowski primarily works alongside defensive coordinator Tara Connolly. Still, she mentioned looking forward to learning more about coaching forwards from assistant coach Lauren Williams, a fellow Wisconsin graduate.
Kotlowski is especially excited to be working with Crowell, who was an assistant coach at Minnesota Duluth while Kotlowski was at Wisconsin. “I brought up to her how whenever we would play Duluth, [they were] a very hard team to score against because they were so well structured in the D-zone,” Kotlowski said, speaking of an early meeting with Crowell. “That was really interesting to learn from as a player, but now to be able to coach alongside her and get the behind-the-scenes look, learning her tactics and strategies and how to form that with a group is super interesting to me.”
Crowell isn’t the only coach who had an impact on Kotlowski’s approach behind the bench. As Kotlowski transitioned into coaching, she reflected on the lessons learned from Wisconsin head coach Mark Johnson and his staff. “A lot of the impact came from the communication and having that player-coach relationship,” Kotlowski said. “I think having a good, healthy player-coach relationship really helps you grow and learn but also creates vulnerability for players. It creates openness. It creates a lot of opportunities off the ice that impact the on-ice competitiveness and development.”
As she continues to develop her own identity and coaching strategies, Kotlowski makes a concerted effort to prioritize relationships with her players, inspired by lessons she learned when she was in their shoes. “I’d say my style is very direct, but in a relatable way,” she explained. “Being able to relate with the players on the ice, off the ice, being able to help them navigate the student life part, really trying to have a balance set for these [young players] and helping them grow, that’s important for me.”
But Kotlowski’s transition into assistant coach at Dartmouth isn’t without its difficulties. “I’d say the biggest challenge would probably be remembering everybody’s names first,” she said with a laugh. A new job and a new environment mean new adjustments, like quickly moving from the Midwest to New Hampshire and getting a sense of her new team. “On ice, I’d probably say it’s just trying to get a feel for the strategies and the coaching styles that they want to reiterate between all the assistants,” Kotlowski added.
Not to mention, Dartmouth is a different environment from where Kotlowski played. She said she notices it mostly in the academic rigor and time-management skills the Big Green players demonstrate. “They’re Ivy League students, so they have a very high-paced experience in the classroom. I think with them being very elite off the ice, they’re just as elite on the ice, and I think that elevates their status as student-athletes. It really puts the ‘student’ in the athlete.”
Kotlowski also noted how the Dartmouth team’s intelligence in the classroom comes out on the ice, too. “When it comes to hockey, they want to learn, and they’re eager to do it the right way, and I think that all plays into their schooling,” she said. “They want to be perfect, but in hockey, you’re not going to be perfect every time, so that’s something that they’re also learning.”
Even after only a few weeks at Dartmouth, Kotlowski feels optimistic about this season. She’s excited to see her new team develop from behind the bench. “I’m really looking forward to seeing how our group competes, given what I’ve seen and the players coming in,” she explained. “Our freshman class is a really talented group, and how they push returning players, it’s really interesting to see that dynamic.”
Kotlowski is also glad that she gets to grow as a coach alongside the players in a welcoming environment. “One thing that I love about the coaches is that they have a really well-established culture. I think they really value that, and it’s a great asset to have within a team. A lot of our success is going to come from [our positive culture] because it’s going to translate [to] the ice.”
Dartmouth opens their season at home against St. Michael’s on Friday, Oct. 16, at 7 p.m. ET. All games will be available to watch on ESPN+ in the United States, with most available internationally on IvyLeague.tv and/or ECACHockey.tv. For more NCAA coverage, check out all The Ice Garden has available now and follow TIG all season long.
