Kelly Buchberger
Kelly Michael Buchberger (born December 2, 1966) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player. He was the assistant coach for the New York Islanders of the National Hockey League (NHL) and is the head coach of the Tri City Americans of the Western Hockey League (WHL).
| Kelly Buchberger | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Buchberger at the Edmonton Oilers' 2014 training camp | |||
| Born |
December 2, 1966 Langenburg, Saskatchewan, Canada | ||
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) | ||
| Weight | 210 lb (95 kg; 15 st 0 lb) | ||
| Position | Right Wing | ||
| Shot | Left | ||
| Played for |
Edmonton Oilers Atlanta Thrashers Los Angeles Kings Phoenix Coyotes Pittsburgh Penguins | ||
| National team |
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Canada | ||
| NHL Draft |
188th overall, 1985 Edmonton Oilers | ||
| Playing career | 1986–2004 | ||
Playing career
Buchberger has played for the Edmonton Oilers, Atlanta Thrashers, Los Angeles Kings, Phoenix Coyotes, and the Pittsburgh Penguins. He also played minor hockey with the Western Hockey League Moose Jaw Warriors and pro hockey with the American Hockey League Nova Scotia Oilers.
He was drafted in the ninth round by the Edmonton Oilers in the 1985 NHL Entry Draft, making him the 188th overall pick. He made his NHL debut in 1987 Stanley Cup finals. During his playing career, he was known best for his gritty play and leadership, having captained the Oilers for four years as the team's 9th leader in franchise history.[1] He won two Stanley Cups with Edmonton, in 1987 and 1990.
Buchberger was the last remaining active member of the Oilers' roster to have been on one of their five Stanley Cup winning teams, along with Marty McSorley. He remained with the Oilers until 1999, when he was selected by the Atlanta Thrashers in the 1999 NHL Expansion Draft.[2]
Coaching career
After retiring, Buchberger was an assistant coach with the AHL Edmonton Road Runners team in 2004–05. He then joined the Oilers management as a development coach. On August 3, 2007, he was named head coach of the Oilers' American Hockey League affiliate, the Springfield Falcons, and guided the team to a 35–35–10 record, the team's first .500 season since 1998–99. Buchberger then was promoted to the Edmonton Oilers during the 2008 offseason, becoming an assistant coach with them. On June 10, 2014, he was reassigned to the role of player personnel and replaced as assistant coach by Craig Ramsay.[3]
On July 11, 2017, Buchberger was hired as the assistant coach by the New York Islanders.[4] In 2018, he was named the head coach of the Tri-City Americans in the Western Hockey League.[5]
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1983–84 | Melville Millionaires | SJHL | 60 | 14 | 11 | 25 | 139 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1984–85 | Moose Jaw Warriors | WHL | 51 | 12 | 17 | 29 | 114 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1985–86 | Moose Jaw Warriors | WHL | 72 | 14 | 22 | 36 | 206 | 13 | 11 | 4 | 15 | 37 | ||
| 1986–87 | Nova Scotia Oilers | AHL | 70 | 12 | 20 | 32 | 257 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 23 | ||
| 1986–87 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | ||
| 1987–88 | Nova Scotia Oilers | AHL | 49 | 21 | 23 | 44 | 206 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | ||
| 1987–88 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 19 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 81 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1988–89 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 66 | 5 | 9 | 14 | 234 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1989–90 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 55 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 168 | 19 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 13 | ||
| 1990–91 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 64 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 160 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 25 | ||
| 1991–92 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 79 | 20 | 24 | 44 | 157 | 16 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 32 | ||
| 1992–93 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 83 | 12 | 18 | 30 | 133 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1993–94 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 84 | 3 | 18 | 21 | 199 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1994–95 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 48 | 7 | 17 | 24 | 82 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1995–96 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 82 | 11 | 14 | 25 | 184 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1996–97 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 81 | 8 | 30 | 38 | 159 | 12 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 16 | ||
| 1997–98 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 82 | 6 | 17 | 23 | 122 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 25 | ||
| 1998–99 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 52 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 68 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1999–00 | Atlanta Thrashers | NHL | 68 | 5 | 12 | 17 | 139 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1999–00 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 13 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 13 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 2000–01 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 82 | 6 | 14 | 20 | 75 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 2001–02 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 74 | 6 | 7 | 13 | 105 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | ||
| 2002–03 | Phoenix Coyotes | NHL | 79 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 109 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 71 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 109 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | Bentley Generals | ChHL | 9 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 1182 | 105 | 204 | 309 | 2297 | 97 | 10 | 14 | 24 | 129 | ||||
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Representing Canada | ||
| Ice hockey | ||
| World Championships | ||
.svg.png.webp){kind=icon} | 1994 Italy | |
.svg.png.webp){kind=icon} | 1996 Austria | |
Coaching record
| Team | Year | Regular season | Post season | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | L | OTL | SOL | Pts | Finish | Result | ||
| SPR | 2007–08 | 80 | 35 | 35 | 5 | 5 | 80 | 5th in Atlantic | Missed playoffs |
| TC | 2018–19 | 68 | 34 | 28 | 5 | 1 | 74 | 4th in U.S. | Lost in first round |
Awards and honours
| Award | Year |
|---|---|
| NHL | |
| Stanley Cup (Edmonton Oilers) | 1986–87, 1989–90 |
See also
- List of NHL players with 1000 games played
- List of NHL players with 2000 career penalty minutes
References
- "Kelly Buchburger named Oilers ninth captain". Edmonton Journal. October 7, 1995. Retrieved July 2, 2016.
- "Atlantan's welcome back NHL". The Augusta Chronicle. October 3, 1999. Retrieved July 3, 2016.
- "Craig Ramsay hired, Kelly Buchburger re-assigned as Oilers revamp staff". Edmonton Journal. June 10, 2014. Retrieved June 20, 2014.
- "Islanders Name Buchberger Assistant Coach". NHL.com. July 11, 2017. Retrieved July 12, 2017.
- "He won the Stanley Cup in the NHL. Now he's coaching the Tri-City Americans". Tri-City Herald. July 17, 2018.
External links
- Biographical information and career statistics from Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Position created |
Atlanta Thrashers captain 1999–2000 |
Succeeded by Steve Staios |
| Preceded by Shayne Corson |
Edmonton Oilers captain 1995–99 |
Succeeded by Doug Weight |