COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho — When the Finlandia Lions women’s hockey team takes the ice, the voice addressing the team will carry a different tone from the one that has been at the helm the last few seasons.

Former Wisconsin Badgers winger Lindsay Macy has been tasked with the job of continuing the rebuilding process begun by former Lions head coach Matt Marchel.

She will have her work cut out for her. The Lions won seven games under Marchel’s watchful eye the past five seasons, and only two games over the course of the previous five seasons before he took charge.

However, Macy is not one to shy away from a difficult situation.

“What I think is unique about this program is that is ready for a rebuild,” Macy said. “I enjoy that. I enjoy putting the pieces of the puzzle together and giving opportunities to girls to play at the next level and then to turn things around.

“That’s really, to be honest, what intrigued me about the program. It seems as though the administration is on board and they would support a coach who’s willing to do that.”

Macy, when considering making the jump from Idaho to Hancock, felt that the fit was good, even without having seen the Copper Country firsthand.

“I had never been to the area, so I couldn’t, I can’t, really say the area drew me to it more than just the job,” she said.

However, upon visiting the Copper Country, she felt it would be a good fit.

“I went out there and visited,” she said. “I started doing a little bit of research. I’m a big skier, big mountain biker. I hear that there’s some of that around there. To me, that’s better than going to a big city, and not having any of that. Being able to go out there and do that kind of stuff outside of hockey is huge to me.”

Macy has a larger-than-life personality. She discovered hockey at a young age because her brother played, and she wanted to be like him.

She played high school hockey at Owatonna High School in Minnesota, spending her final two seasons at the school as the team captain, scoring 203 points on the strength of 149 goals over those two seasons. From there, she went on to star for two seasons at Wisconsin, scoring 37 goals and 74 points in those two seasons.

She went to Wisconsin with the goal of making the U.S. Olympic team. As a goal scorer, her talent was there, but she did not keep herself in the type of shape the team was looking for, which was a hard lesson for her to learn.

“Wisconsin was a great opportunity,” she said. “I learned a lot about myself. I met a lot of great hockey players. I think my experience there as a college athlete is one of the reasons why I think I’m kind of destined to be a coach.”

From there, she made a choice that still haunts her to this day. Macy transferred from Wisconsin to Minnesota State, not a decision one makes lightly.

“I made a lot of mistakes,” said Macy. “I probably shouldn’t have left Wisconsin. It wasn’t one of my better decisions in life, but I think it helps me understand kids more. I understand what kids are going through.

“I’ve learned that everybody’s kind of got their own path, right? It doesn’t matter who you are, (it) doesn’t matter what you know, what experiences you have, you’re still gonna have to battle.”

Looking back, Macy feels that decision is now just part of what makes her a smart choice to lead young women, because she can speak to them from experience.

“I can be there with experiences of the past and, and use those examples to help kids through those phases,” she said. “So those are some experiences that you can’t replace and they’ve definitely helped me become kind of who I am today.”

Her final two seasons of college hockey, she scored just 20 goals and 44 points with the Mavericks. Injuries were a big part of her experience at Mankato, and taught her that there is more to life than hockey.

Making mistakes are part of the human experience in college, and Macy has made her share. However, she has found a way to use those experiences to help teach her the lessons she now uses as a coach when she is on the ice with her team.

She is looking forward to bringing her up-tempo attitude and expectations to the Copper Country starting with this coming season.