John Stevens

John Stevens

Born: May 4, 1966
Age: 57
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Biography

John A. Stevens (born May 4, 1966) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman and is a former head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He is currently an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Kings. Stevens was born in Campbellton, New Brunswick, but grew up in Turkey Point in Norfolk County, Ontario.

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Playing career

Stevens was drafted by the Philadelphia Flyers in the third round, 47th overall, of the 1984 NHL Entry Draft. Stevens followed up a junior career with the Oshawa Generals by playing four seasons for the Hershey Bears of the AHL. He was called up to the NHL level at times during the 1986-87 and 1987-88 seasons, playing in a total of 9 games with the Flyers. He was signed by the Hartford Whalers in 1990 and reassigned to the Whalers' AHL team, the Springfield Indians. Stevens was named team captain that year and went on to win the Calder Cup with the team that same year for the franchise's seventh Championship title. With the Indians' franchise moving to Worcester, Massachusetts in 1994, Stevens became the first captain of the successor franchise, the Springfield Falcons, where he played for two additional years.

In 1996, Stevens signed once more with the Flyers, and was named the first captain of its expansion farm team, the Philadelphia Phantoms. The Phantoms won their first Calder Cup in his second season as captain.

Stevens played in 53 NHL games for the Flyers and the Whalers scoring no goals, ten assists and recording 48 penalty minutes. In the AHL, he played in 834 games, scoring 20 goals and 166 assists for 186 points. Ironically, given his low scoring output as a defensive defenceman, Stevens scored the first goals in franchise history for both the Falcons and the Phantoms.

Coaching career

John Stevens
Born (1966-05-04) May 4, 1966 (age 50)
Campbellton, NB, CAN
Current position Assistant Coach
Current team Los Angeles Kings
Previous team(s) Philadelphia Flyers
Philadelphia Phantoms
Stanley Cup wins 2
Years as NHL player 1984-85 - 1998-99
Years as a coach 1999-present
Years as an NHL coach 2006-present
Years with current team 2010-present

Stevens was forced to retire as a player in 1999 due to a career-ending eye injury but remained with the Phantoms as an assistant coach. He then became the club's second head coach in 2000 when Bill Barber was promoted to the Flyers. During his six season tenure as coach, the Phantoms made the playoffs four times and won their second Calder Cup title in 2005. Stevens was himself promoted to the Phantoms' parent club as an assistant coach after the 2005-06 season, and on October 22, 2006, was named as head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers after Ken Hitchcock was fired. On October 26, Stevens coached his first NHL game, a 3-2 win over the Florida Panthers. On November 20, the Flyers announced that they had signed Stevens to a 2-year contract.

His first season with the Flyers saw his team set a franchise record for consecutive losses (10 games) and finish the 2006-07 season with the club's worst record in its 40-year history. The Flyers set an NHL record for the biggest drop off in points from one season to the next - 101 points in the 2005-06 season to 56 points in the 2006-07 season for lowest point total in the league.

However, as stunning as their fall from grace was the previous season, Stevens guided the Flyers to an immediate renaissance in 2007-08. The Flyers won 42 games and amassed 95 points in the regular season under Stevens's guidance. In the playoffs, the Flyers beat the Washington Capitals in the first round and upset the top-seeded Montreal Canadiens in the second round before falling to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Eastern Conference Finals. For this, The Hockey News honored Stevens with their Coach of the Year award.

Stevens was fired by the Flyers on December 4, 2009, after a 13-11-1 start and with a team expected to be a Stanley Cup favorite sitting in 10th place in the Eastern Conference.

On June 24, 2010, he was signed to a three-year contract to be an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Kings, joining former Flyers coach Terry Murray as well as former Flyers player Ron Hextall in the Kings organization.

During the 2011-12 NHL season, after Kings coach Terry Murray was fired, Stevens acted as interim head coach for 4 games before Darryl Sutter took over. He then returned to his post as Assistant Coach, a position he held when the Kings won their first Stanley Cup in franchise history at the season's end.

Personal

John grew up in the lakeside village of Turkey Point in a typical hockey family. His three brothers also played hockey and his brother Larry Stevens, was a notable player in the OHL playing with the Sudbury Wolves. John's son, also named John, played hockey for Salisbury School in Connecticut, then in the USHL and now plays for the Northeastern Huskies hockey team in Boston, Massachusetts, along with his younger brother Nolan. Stevens resides in Sea Isle City, New Jersey in the summer.

Awards

  • 1988 - Calder Cup Hershey Bears (Player)
  • 1991 - Calder Cup Springfield Indians (Player, Team Captain)
  • 1996 - AHL All-Star Game (Player)
  • 1998 - Calder Cup Philadelphia Phantoms (Player; Team Captain)
  • 2005 - Calder Cup Philadelphia Phantoms (Head Coach)
  • 2007 - Philadelphia Phantoms Hall of Fame inductee
  • 2008 - The Hockey News Coach of the Year
  • 2012 - Stanley Cup "Los Angeles Kings" (Assistant Coach)
  • 2014 - Stanley Cup "Los Angeles Kings" (Assistant Coach)

Records

  • 1994 - Scored first goal in Springfield Falcons history
  • 1996 - Scored first goal in Philadelphia Phantoms history
  • 2006 - Most consecutive losses in Philadelphia Flyers history (10) (Head Coach)
  • 2006-07 - Worst season record in Philadelphia Flyers history (Head Coach)
  • 2006-07 - NHL record for the biggest drop off in points from one season to the next (101 points in the 2005-06 season to 56 points in the 2006-07 season) (Head Coach)
  • 2008 - Tied 2006 record of most consecutive losses in Philadelphia Flyers history (10) (Head Coach)

Career statistics

Playing statistics

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1983-84 Oshawa Generals OHL 70 1 10 11 71 7 0 1 1 6
1984-85 Oshawa Generals OHL 45 2 10 12 61 5 0 2 2 4
1984-85 Hershey Bears AHL 3 0 0 0 2
1985-86 Oshawa Generals OHL 65 1 7 8 146 6 0 2 2 14
1985-86 Kalamazoo Wings IHL 6 0 1 1 8 6 0 3 3 9
1986-87 Hershey Bears AHL 63 1 15 16 131 3 0 0 0 7
1986-87 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 6 0 2 2 14
1987-88 Hershey Bears AHL 59 1 15 16 108
1987-88 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 3 0 0 0 0
1988-89 Hershey Bears AHL 78 3 13 16 129 12 1 1 2 29
1989-90 Hershey Bears AHL 79 3 10 13 193
1990-91 Springfield Indians AHL 65 0 12 12 139 18 0 6 6 35
1990-91 Hartford Whalers NHL 14 0 1 1 11
1991-92 Springfield Indians AHL 45 1 12 13 73 11 1 3 4 27
1991-92 Hartford Whalers NHL 21 0 4 4 19
1992-93 Springfield Indians AHL 74 1 19 20 111 15 0 1 1 18
1993-94 Springfield Indians AHL 71 3 9 12 85 3 0 0 0 0
1993-94 Hartford Whalers NHL 9 0 3 3 4
1994-95 Springfield Falcons AHL 79 5 15 20 122
1995-96 Springfield Falcons AHL 69 0 19 19 95 10 0 1 1 31
1996-97 Philadelphia Phantoms AHL 74 2 18 20 116 10 0 2 2 8
1997-98 Philadelphia Phantoms AHL 50 1 9 10 76 20 0 6 6 44
1998-99 Philadelphia Phantoms AHL 25 0 1 1 19
NHL totals 53 0 10 10 48
AHL totals 834 21 167 188 1399 102 2 20 22 199

Coaching statistics

AHL

Team Year Regular season Post season
G W L T OTL Pts Finish Result
PHI 2000-01 80 36 34 5 5 82 4th in Mid-Atlantic lost in second round (2-4) to WBS
PHI 2001-02 80 33 27 15 5 86 3rd in South lost in first round (0-3) to SYR
PHI 2002-03 80 33 33 6 8 80 4th in South DNQ
PHI 2003-04 80 46 25 7 2 101 1st in East lost in second round (2-4) to WBS
PHI 2004-05 80 48 25 3 4 103 2nd in East Calder Cup (4-0) over CHI
PHI 2005-06 80 34 37 2 7 77 6th in South DNQ
Total 480 230 181 33 25

NHL

Team Year Regular Season Post Season
G W L OTL Pts Finish W L Win % Result
PHI 2006-07 74 21 42 11 (56) 5th in Atlantic - - - Missed Playoffs
PHI 2007-08 82 42 29 11 95 4th in Atlantic 9 8 .529 Lost In Third Round (PIT)
PHI 2008-09 82 44 27 11 99 3rd in Atlantic 2 4 .333 Lost In First Round (PIT)
PHI 2009-10 25 13 11 1 (88) 3rd in Atlantic - - - Fired Mid-Season
LA 2011-12 4 2 2 0 (95) 2nd in Pacific - - - (Interim Coach)
Total 267 122 111 34 278 0 Division Championships 11 12 .478 0 Stanley Cups
2 Playoff Appearances

[ Source: Wikipedia ]


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