Cunneyworth and Ladouceur named assistant coaches in Montreal
Friday, 22.07.2011 / 11:00 AM / News
canadiens.com
PRESS RELEASE
MONTREAL — Montreal Canadiens general manager Pierre Gauthier announced today the appointment of Randy Cunneyworth and Randy Ladouceur as assistant coaches.
“We are very pleased to have both Randy Cunneyworth and Randy Ladouceur joining our coaching staff. This duo did a tremendous job in their first year with the Hamilton Bulldogs last season. Their experience, dedication and hard work will inevitably contribute to the development of our young players which is a key factor to the success of our team. We have already started our preparation for the upcoming season and we welcome both Randy Cunneyworth and Randy Ladouceur as the newest members of our coaching staff,” said Canadiens general manager Pierre Gauthier.
In their first season as head coach and assistant coach respectively with the AHL Hamilton Bulldogs in 2010-11, Randy Cunneyworth and Randy Ladouceur led the Bulldogs to the North Division championship with a 44-27-2-7 record for 97 points. Furthermore, the Bulldogs reached the Western Conference Finals where they were defeated in seven games (3-4) by the Houston Aeros.
Before joining the Bulldogs, Cunneyworth was an assistant coach with the National Hockey League’s Atlanta Thrashers for two seasons (2008-09 and 2009-10). He previously spent nine seasons with the American Hockey League’s Rochester Americans, including seven seasons as head coach from 2000 to 2008. During his tenure with the Americans, he led his team to three 40-plus win seasons, two 100-point seasons and six playoff berths. He left Rochester as the longest serving coach in franchise history and ranks second on the club’s all-time wins list.
During the 2004-2005 season, Cunneyworth led the Americans to a 51-19-4-6 record (112 points), en route to the Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy as the league’s top team in the regular season standings. That season, Cunneyworth would earn the Louis A.R. Pieri Memorial Trophy as the AHL’s Coach of the Year. He also reached the AHL’s Calder Cup Finals with Rochester as a player/assistant coach in 1999-2000, earning the Fred T. Hunt Memorial Award that same season (sportsmanship, determination and dedication to hockey).
Cunneyworth played in a total of 273 career AHL games with Rochester and Springfield, recording 270 points (166 goals, 104 assists) helping Rochester win the Calder Cup in 1983. The Etobicoke, Ontario native played 15 seasons in the NHL between 1981 and 1999. Selected in the 8th round, 167th overall, by the Buffalo Sabres in the 1980 NHL Entry Draft, the left winger played 866 career regular season games, suiting up with Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Winnipeg, Hartford, Chicago and Ottawa. He registered 414 points (189 goals, 225 assists) and totalled 1,280 penalty minutes. He served as the Ottawa Senators captain for four seasons (1994-1998) and reached the Stanley Cup Finals with the Sabres in 1999.
Randy Ladouceur is returning to the NHL, where he served for ten seasons as an assistant coach between 1996 and 2008.
Ladouceur began his coaching career as an assistant with the Hartford Whalers in 1996-97. The franchise then moved to Carolina, where he served for seven seasons as an assistant coach with the Hurricanes (1997 to 2004). Following a full season as head coach of the Oshawa Generals of the Ontario Hockey League in 2005-06, he joined the Toronto Maple Leafs coaching staff as an assistant for two seasons (2006-07 and 2007-08). Before joining the Bulldogs, he was assistant coach with the OHL’s Niagara IceDogs (2009-10).
A native of Brockville, Ontario, Ladouceur played during 14 seasons in the NHL between 1982 and 1996. The giant defenseman suited up for a total of 931 career regular season games with the Detroit Red Wings, Hartford Whalers and Anaheim Mighty Ducks. He registered 156 points (30 goals, 126 assists) and totalled 1,322 penalty minutes. He also participated in 40 career playoff games, totaling 13 points (5-8-13) and 59 penalty minutes.