AHL Pocket book: New coaches depend on expertise to make affect

The American Hockey League’s improvement mannequin extends past gamers.Twenty-three of the NHL’s 31 groups have a coach on workers who hung out within the AHL.Anaheim Geese coach Dallas Eakins rejoined that group after 4 seasons with San Diego, the workforce’s AHL affiliate. Coaches for every of the previous 4 Stanley Cup champion groups (Joel Quenneville, Mike Sullivan, Barry Trotz, and Craig Berube) have AHL roots.Here’s a have a look at the brand new AHL coaches, every with a special background – and one workforce with a brand new, however acquainted face. Kevin Dineen, San Diego (Anaheim Geese)Eakins solid a return journey to the NHL by going via San Diego.Dineen will attempt to duplicate that path. Eakins went again to the AHL after two seasons as coach of the Edmonton Oilers. Dineen coached two seasons with the Florida Panthers, earlier than being changed 16 video games into his third season. The 55-year-old had a 56-62-28 document. He’s a part of the Quenneville teaching tree and was an assistant for 4 seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks, successful the Stanley Cup in 2015.Dineen spent three earlier seasons with the Geese group, teaching in Portland, the previous AHL affiliate. He received the Louis A.R. Pieri Award because the AHL’s high coach in 2005-06, his first season. When Portland’s affiliation shifted to the Buffalo Sabres, he coached three extra AHL seasons in that group. He was 266-185-29 document and reached 100 or extra factors 3 times throughout that six-year span.He coached Canada’s girls’s workforce to a gold medal on the 2014 Winter Olympics.Dineen performed 1,188 regular-season video games and had 760 factors (355 targets, 405 assists) with the Hartford Whalers, Philadelphia Flyers, the Carolina Hurricanes, Ottawa Senators and the Columbus Blue Jackets. Mike Eaves, Cleveland (Columbus Blue Jackets)It has been 26 years between stops within the AHL for Eaves.Earlier than Columbus employed him June 18, 2019, the 63-year-old had not labored within the AHL since 1992-93 when he was with Hershey, then an affiliate of the Flyers.Eaves, who performed 324 NHL video games with the Minnesota North Stars and the Calgary Flames, was constructing a formidable resume within the interim.He spent 4 seasons as an assistant coach with Philadelphia and the Pittsburgh Penguins. From there he went to the College of Wisconsin for 14 seasons, the place he reached the NCAA event seven instances and received the nationwide championship in 2006. Scott Gordon, Lehigh Valley (Philadelphia Flyers)Final season, Gordon was promoted from Lehigh Valley to exchange Dave Hakstol with the Flyers on Dec. 18. He completed the season in Philadelphia with a 25-22-Four document.After the Flyers employed Alain Vigneault as coach, Gordon elected to return to Lehigh Valley. Philadelphia was Gordon’s second NHL job; he coached components of three seasons with the New York Islanders from 2008 to 2011.The 56-year-old has the ninth-most wins (367) in AHL historical past. He received the Pieri Award in 2007-08 with Windfall (Boston Bruins). Kris Knoblauch, Hartford (New York Rangers)Knoblauch is new to the AHL, however he brings a robust background within the NHL and Canadian Hockey League with him. The 41-year-old was part of Gordon’s workers final season in Philadelphia, his second as an assistant with the Flyers.His CHL tenure with Kootenay of the Western Hockey League and Erie of the Ontario Hockey League resulted in a 298-130-16-13 document in seven seasons. His Erie workforce had 4 consecutive 50-win seasons, a CHL document, and he had one league championship every within the WHL and OHL. Amongst his Erie graduates are NHL gamers Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers and Alex DeBrincat and Dylan Strome of the Blackhawks. Mike Vellucci, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (Pittsburgh Penguins)The AHL’s reigning Pieri Award winner received the Calder Cup with Charlotte (Carolina Hurricanes) final season. 13 of his Charlotte gamers had been recalled to the Hurricanes final season, and Charlotte had a league-best 51 regular-season wins and 110 factors. His Charlotte workforce had the AHL’s finest regular-season penalty kill and performed a puck-pursuit recreation that was extremely aggressive.He served as a common supervisor alongside along with his teaching duties with Plymouth (OHL). He labored in hockey operations for the Hurricanes and was additionally an assistant common supervisor. He added a job with Pittsburgh as assistant common supervisor after Invoice Guerin departed to turn out to be common supervisor for the Minnesota Wild. Ryan Warsofsky, Charlotte (Carolina Hurricanes)Vellucci’s departure opened a possibility for Warsofsky, the AHL’s youngest coach at 31.Warsofsky inherits a markedly totally different Charlotte roster, however he can lean on his expertise from his time as an assistant coach working with Vellucci.Earlier than Warsofsky landed in Charlotte, he had 5 seasons within the ECHL with South Carolina, the place he was a coach and director of participant operations. That run included a visit by the Washington Capitals affiliate to the Kelly Cup Closing in 2017.