Ted Nolan

Ted Nolan is a former NHL head coach and player. He had brief stints as an NHL player with both the Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings. Nolan began his coaching career in the Ontario Hockey League with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in 1988. He led them to the Memorial Cup Tournament three times and won the 1998 Canadian junior national championship. Nolan made his jump into the NHL coaching ranks as an assistantwith the Hartford Whalers in 1994. The following year, he became head coach of the Buffalo Sabres. Nolan led the team to the Eastern Conference Semifinals in his second season and won the Jack Adams Award as the league's coach of the year. He got another head coaching gig in the league with the New York Islanders in 2006. Nolan spent two years coaching the Islanders and the team reached the playoffs in his first season. He went on to serve as vice president of hockey operations for the AHL's Rochester Americans for three years. Nolan also coached the Latvian men's national team. He started a second stint as the head coach with the Sabres in 2013 and spent two more seasons with the franchise. He has a unique background as a member of the Ojibwe tribe. In 1994, Nolan received the National Aboriginal Achievement Award. Two of his sons have played professional hockey and his son Jordan is a two-time Stanley Cup Champion.