The Lightning has promoted Rob Zettler to head coach of the Syracuse Crunch. Tampa Bay also announced that assistant coach Martin Raymond will join the Crunch in the same capacity.
Via SyracuseCrunch.com:
“We are proud to announce that Rob Zettler is the new coach of the Crunch. We couldn’t be happier that our players in Syracuse will continue to benefit from his wealth of experience both as a long-time player as well as a long-time coach in the NHL and the AHL. Since joining our organization last summer, Rob has been instrumental in preparing our players for the NHL and his contribution thus far is a major reason that the Crunch are currently fighting for top-spot in the AHL,” said Crunch GM Julien BriseBois.
“I have had the pleasure of working with Martin Raymond for the past four seasons and I am very pleased that he has accepted to join the Crunch. His communication and teaching skills will be a great addition to our group. With Rob Zettler as Head Coach and Martin Raymond and Brian Garlock as assistant coaches, we believe we have a very strong coaching staff to help our players reach their full potential and ensure a competitive team for our fans.”
Zettler, 44, played in the NHL for 14 seasons with the Minnesota North Stars, Philadelphia Flyers, Nashville Predators, Washington Capitals, the Sharks and the Maple Leafs. He skated in 569 career games, recording five goals and 70 points. After his retirement in 2002 he joined San Jose as the Sharks Radio color analyst and helped to create the Sharks Alumni Association. He also assisted with the organization’s charitable foundation as well as in the fan development department, participating is youth programs and clinics.
Raymond, 45, has been an assistant coach with the Lightning since July, 2010. Prior to joining the Tampa Bay organization Ryamond worked as an assistant for the AHL’s Hamilton Bulldogs during the 2009-10 campaign.
Raymond served as head coach of the McGill University Redmen for 14 seasons prior to joining the Bulldogs. While at McGill, Raymond amassed a 293-192-35 record in 520 games, including 206-110-30 during the regular season. In 2008 he helped the Redmen bring home the Queen’s Cup league championship for the first time since 1946.
A native of Pierrefonds, Quebec, Raymond received numerous honors while behind the bench at McGill. He was given the Father George Kehoe Memorial Award in 2006 as CIS Coach of the Year and was also named the OUA Eastern Coach of the Year in 2000, 2005, 2006 and 2009. Before beginning his coaching career Raymond played five seasons at McGill, registering 109 goals and 253 points in 154 career games. He garnered all-conference honors on three occasions and All-Canadian status in 1991-92, his final season. Raymond was also named McGill’s male athlete of the year and team MVP that season. He also won the Bronze Medal with Team Canada at the 1991 Spengler Cup.
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