Derek Laxdal (born February 21, 1966) is a Canadian ice hockey coach and former professional right winger. On July 5, 2024, he departed from serving as Head Coach of the Oshawa Generals, where he had served since 2022, and joined the Coachella Valley Firebirds as head coach.[1][2]
| Derek Laxdal | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
February 21, 1966 Stonewall, Manitoba, Canada | ||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (185 cm) | ||
| Weight | 230 lb (104 kg; 16 st 6 lb) | ||
| Position | Right Wing | ||
| Shot | Right | ||
| Played for |
Toronto Maple Leafs New York Islanders | ||
| Current AHL coach | Coachella Valley Firebirds | ||
| Coached for |
Idaho Steelheads Edmonton Oil Kings Texas Stars Oshawa Generals | ||
| NHL draft |
151st overall, 1984 Toronto Maple Leafs | ||
| Playing career | 1984–2001 | ||
Playing career
editBorn and raised in Stonewall, Manitoba, Laxdal was drafted in the eighth round, 151st overall, by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1984 NHL Entry Draft. He played 67 games in the National Hockey League: 51 over four seasons with the Maple Leafs and 16 more over two seasons with the New York Islanders. In an almost 20-year career, he scored points at every level, including a successful four-year stint in the UK between 1995/96 and 1998/99, where he played for the Humberside Hawks, Nottingham Panthers and Sheffield Steelers.
Coaching career
editFrom December 10, 2019, until May 20, 2022, Laxdal was an assistant coach with the Dallas Stars of the National Hockey League. From 2014 to 2019, he was the head coach of the American Hockey League affiliate of the Dallas Stars, the Texas Stars.[3][4] Previously, he served as head coach of the WHL Edmonton Oil Kings and the ECHL Idaho Steelheads. In 2007, he was the ECHL John Brophy recipient of Coach of the Year. Laxdal led the Steelheads to the Kelly Cup championship in the 2006–07 season,[5] and led the Edmonton Oil Kings to WHL titles in 2012 and 2014, winning the 2014 Memorial Cup with the Oil Kings. He is the first coach in the history of the WHL to have three 50 win seasons in a row.
Career statistics
editRegular season and playoffs
edit| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1982–83 | Portland Winter Hawks | WHL | 39 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 27 | 14 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1983–84 | Brandon Wheat Kings | WHL | 70 | 23 | 20 | 43 | 86 | 12 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 10 | ||
| 1984–85 | Brandon Wheat Kings | WHL | 69 | 61 | 41 | 102 | 74 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1984–85 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1984–85 | St. Catharines Saints | AHL | 5 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1985–86 | Brandon Wheat Kings | WHL | 42 | 34 | 35 | 69 | 62 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1985–86 | New Westminster Bruins | WHL | 18 | 9 | 6 | 15 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1985–86 | St. Catharines Saints | AHL | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 15 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1986–87 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1986–87 | Newmarket Saints | AHL | 78 | 24 | 20 | 44 | 69 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1987–88 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1987–88 | Newmarket Saints | AHL | 67 | 18 | 25 | 43 | 81 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1988–89 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 41 | 9 | 6 | 15 | 65 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1988–89 | Newmarket Saints | AHL | 34 | 22 | 22 | 44 | 53 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 5 | ||
| 1989–90 | Newmarket Saints | AHL | 23 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 52 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1989–90 | New York Islanders | NHL | 12 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1989–90 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 28 | 13 | 12 | 25 | 42 | 13 | 8 | 6 | 14 | 47 | ||
| 1990–91 | New York Islanders | NHL | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1990–91 | Capital District Islanders | AHL | 65 | 14 | 25 | 39 | 75 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1991–92 | Capital District Islanders | AHL | 49 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 61 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 10 | ||
| 1993–94 | Ilves | SM-l | 17 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 20 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 1994–95 | Roanoke Express | ECHL | 66 | 32 | 24 | 56 | 144 | 8 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 25 | ||
| 1995–96 | Humberside Hawks | BHL | 33 | 29 | 29 | 58 | 163 | 7 | 9 | 4 | 13 | 16 | ||
| 1996–97 | Nottingham Panthers | BISL | 31 | 14 | 14 | 28 | 54 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 27 | ||
| 1997–98 | Nottingham Panthers | BISL | 44 | 24 | 23 | 47 | 103 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 10 | ||
| 1998–99 | Sheffield Steelers | BISL | 29 | 9 | 13 | 22 | 32 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1999–00 | Sheffield Steelers | BISL | 18 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1999–00 | Odessa Jackalopes | WPHL | 46 | 28 | 25 | 53 | 53 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 4 | ||
| 2000–01 | Odessa Jackalopes | WPHL | 65 | 21 | 23 | 44 | 103 | 11 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 31 | ||
| AHL totals | 356 | 108 | 122 | 230 | 450 | 31 | 10 | 10 | 20 | 86 | ||||
| NHL totals | 67 | 12 | 7 | 19 | 88 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ||||
References
edit- ^ "Generals name Derek Laxdal 35th head coach in team history – Ontario Hockey League". Retrieved 2022-10-19.
- ^ "DEREK LAXDAL NAMED FIREBIRDS' HEAD COACH". Retrieved 2024-07-05.
- ^ Heika, Mike. "Stars name Derek Laxdal as head coach of Texas Stars" Archived 2014-07-08 at the Wayback Machine, The Dallas Morning News, July 3, 2014. (accessed 8 July 2014)
- ^ "DALLAS STARS APPOINT NEIL GRAHAM AS TEXAS STARS HEAD COACH". texas Stars. December 10, 2019.
- ^ "Derek Laxdal: Steelheads Staff". Archived from the original on 2008-02-03. Retrieved 2007-10-25.
External links
edit- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database