Mike Stothers (born February 22, 1962) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. Currently, he serves as an assistant coach for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League (NHL).
Mike Stothers as assistant coach with the Pittsburgh Penguins
Early Playing Career
Mike Stothers played junior hockey with the Kingston Canadians of the OMJHL from 1979 to 1982, appearing in 183 games, registering 74 points (9 goals-65 assists). In 21 playoff games with Kingston, Stothers had 6 points (1 goal-5 assists).
After Kingston was eliminated from the 1982 OHL playoffs, Stothers joined the Maine Mariners of the AHL for the rest of the 1981-82 season, going pointless in 5 regular season games and in 1 playoff game. Stothers played the entire 1982-83 season with Maine, playing in all 80 games while scoring 18 points (2 goals-16 assists). He then went pointless in 12 playoff games. Stothers once again spent an entire season with the Mariners in 1983-84, getting 12 points (2 goals-10 assists) in 61 games, and then in 17 playoff games, he recorded an assist.
AHL and NHL Playing Years
The Flyers moved their AHL affiliate to Hershey in 1984-85, and Stothers moved along with them, and had the best season of his career, setting a career high with 26 points (8 goals-18 assists) with the Hershey Bears in 60 games. Stothers returned to Hershey in 1985-86, getting 13 points (4 goals-9 assists) in 66 games, and 3 points (0 goals-3 assists) in 13 playoff games. He also played in 6 games with the Flyers, getting an assist, and played in 3 playoff games with Philadelphia, getting no points.
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In 1986-87, Stothers was in Hershey again, getting a career high 283 penalty minutes, and had 16 points (5 goals-11 assists) in 75 games. He had no points in 5 playoff games with the Bears. Stothers started the 1987-88 season splitting time between Hershey, where in 13 games he had 5 points (3 goals-2 assists), and in 3 games with the Flyers, he was held pointless.
On December 4, 1987, the Flyers sent Stothers to the Toronto Maple Leafs for future considerations. On June 21, 1988, the Maple Leafs sent Stothers back to the Philadelphia Flyers for Bill Root, however he would spend the last 4 years of his playing career with the Hershey Bears of the AHL.
In 1988-89, Stothers would get 15 points (4 goals-11 assists) in 76 games, along with 262 PIM, and he would earn 2 assists in 9 playoff games. In 1989-90, Stothers would see his production slip to 7 points (1 goal-6 assists) in 56 games as the Bears failed to make the playoffs. In 1990-91, Stothers would get 11 points (5 goals-6 assists) in 72 games, and chipped in with an assist in 7 playoff games. The 1991-92 season was the final one of Stothers playing career, and he ended it as a player-assistant coach with the Bears, getting 11 points (3 goals-8 assists) in 70 games, and had an assist in 6 playoff games.
Stothers is quick to admit that he wasn’t the greatest player to ever step on the ice, but he was a first-round draft pick. He may not have been the second coming of Gretzky, but he was better than he suggests.
He still stands as Hershey’s all-time leader in penalty minutes.
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Stothers, it seems, fought for everything he earned. He never hesitated to take one for the team.
Transition to Coaching
St. Mike Stothers was an assistant coach with the Hershey Bears, the Philadelphia Flyers AHL affiliate, from 1992 to 1996. When the Flyers relocated their AHL team to Philadelphia and became the Philadelphia Phantoms, Stothers went along with them, and was an assistant coach from 1996 to 2000.
He also spent some time with the Flyers as an interim assistant coach in the 1998-1999 season, and once again in the 1999-2000 season before getting the job permanently on June 13, 2000. Stothers stayed with the Flyers through the 2001-02 season.
Following a 10-year-playing career that included 30 NHL contests with the Flyers and Toronto Maple Leafs, Stothers enjoyed a phenomenal nine-year run as an assistant coach for both the Flyers and their AHL affiliates.
During his first three seasons with the expansion Phantoms, he helped guide the club to three straight division crowns (1996-99), consecutive AHL regular season titles (1996-98) and the 1998 Calder Cup championship.
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After serving interim stints as an assistant coach with the Flyers during both the 1998-99 and 1999-00 seasons, Stothers worked behind the NHL team’s bench for two full seasons from 2000-02, capping off his tenure with an Atlantic Division title in 2001-02.
“I think the Red Wings liked that I had been with the Flyers so long, because they like that kind of loyalty in their people,” Stothers said. “I also think they liked the fact that I had been a player at all levels.
“I’ve got a pretty good feel for what it’s like to be a player and what it’s like to try to reach your ultimate goal of playing in the NHL. It’s very difficult to play in the American Hockey League. There are a lot of demands, both physically and mentally.”
The fact that Stothers’ resume includes Calder Cup championships both as a player and as a coach should earn him the immediate respect of his new team. Both titles, he contends, were equally satisfying.
Winning the Cup (in 1984) as player was “a super, super thing,” according to Stothers. “I remember each and every guy that was on the team, from the guys who played regularly to the guys that didn’t.”
But the Calder Cup title in 1998 as an assistant coach was no less rewarding. “To see how happy those guys are when they’re leaping over the boards, it’s such a great feeling because you’re so happy for them.
“It’s no different for me than when I’ve gone to watch my daughters dance or gone to their swim competitions. You’re beaming. At the moment, you couldn’t be any happier for them.”
It’s a feeling that he would love to share with the people in Grand Rapids. He knows it’s his job is to develop players for the Red Wings, but he also realizes that there are great expectations for building a champion.
“It’s a fine line,” Stothers said. “This is a developmental league, first and foremost, but at the same time everybody wants to win. You want to develop players in a winning environment, so you do both. That’s the competitive nature.”
Head Coaching Roles
In his first season with Owen Sound in 2002-03, he guided the Attack to a 27-30-7-4 record for 65 points, an improvement of 4 points the team had the previous season, however his team was swept in the 1st round of the playoffs to the Plymouth Whalers. The Attack improved to a record of 30-27-7-4, 71 points, which was good for 6th place in the Western Conference. The Attack would then go on to lose in a hard-fought 7-game series against the Guelph Storm, who went on to win the league championship that season. The Attack improved more in 2004-05, to a record of 40-18-7-3, 90 points, which is a franchise record. Owen Sound then won their first playoff round since 1999, sweeping Plymouth, before getting swept themselves by the Kitchener Rangers in the 2nd round. The Attack went into a rebuilding stage in 2005-06, however they played much better than people predicted, finishing with a 32-29-7, 71-point season. They had a rematch against the heavily favoured Kitchener Rangers, and took them out in 5 games in the opening round.
On July 18, 2007, Stothers was named as the next head coach of the Grand Rapids Griffins. He succeeded Greg Ireland, who had been head coach of the Griffins from 2004-05 to 2006-07.
In July 2014, Stothers was named the new head coach for the Manchester Monarchs, an affiliate team of the L.A. Kings. In June 2015, Mike led the team to the Calder Cup Championship.
Joining the Red Wings
“When you get a call from (general manager) Ken Holland and the Detroit Red Wings, and they want to talk to you, you’re flattered, you’re in awe, and you’re just grateful for the opportunity.”
He drove to Detroit for an interview with Holland and assistant general manager Jim Nill. “They made me feel very comfortable,” he recalled. “They started out doing most of the talking.”
Stothers heard about the situation in Grand Rapids, how they were looking for a new head coach after relieving Greg Ireland of his duties. “They talked about the organization and what they were looking for. They asked questions. I found it very easy to talk to Ken and Jim.”
The Red Wings’ brain trust must have been impressed. They offered him the job on the spot.
“That was a total shock,” Stothers said. “I was prepared to make the five-hour drive back to Owen Sound and wait by the phone for a couple of days. It caught me totally off-guard, but it didn’t take me but a millisecond to say yes.”
Which might have surprised the Red Wings’ brass. “They said, ‘Don’t you want to go home and talk to your family and discuss it with them?’ but I knew I had their support even before I went down. I told the Wings, ‘If you’re offering the job, I’m accepting.’”
Of course, Stothers had worn two hats long enough to make sure he had his bases were covered. “My youngest had just finished high school and she was going to attend the University of Guelph, where my oldest already was. It was absolutely a determining factor in my plans, career-wise.
“It just seemed like this was a good time, plus it was the Red Wings.”
To seal the deal, Holland and Nill brought in Steve Yzerman and (senior vice president) Jimmy Devellano to meet their new coach. “I’m in the office with all these guys and I thought, ‘Who could say no to this?’”
Besides Stothers’ pleasant personality and perceived paternal instincts, the Red Wings liked his experience.
As far as Stothers is concerned, he wouldn’t have it any other way.
“My dad was a produce manager and he worked 50 years in a grocery store. He didn’t particularly care for his job, but he went to work every day anyway... still works part-time, even after he retired.
“Here I am going to the rink every day, watching hockey, playing hockey and being around hockey players all day. They call it work and it’s a job, but a lot of people would love to be in my shoes.
“I consider myself very fortunate.”
Personal Connections
Family is important to new Griffins head coach Mike Stothers, who knows that the relationship between hard work and success is more than relative.
Stothers will tell you he’s a family man, first and foremost. He loves spending time with his wife, Judi, his daughters, Ashley, 20, and Logan, 18, and his dog, Bailey, a golden retriever.
At the same time, he loves coaching. It is obvious that he finds equal pleasure in the role. “I enjoy my job immensely,” he says. “I can’t imagine anything else I’d rather do.”
For nearly 20 years, Stothers had a job within the Philadelphia Flyers organization, first as a player, both in the AHL and NHL, and later as a coach.
But in sports, stability is a gift, not a given. Stothers appreciated what it afforded him and his family, but eventually he yearned for a new opportunity, a new challenge.
He wanted to be a head coach.
Stothers got his wish in Owen Sound, the Ontario Hockey League outpost where he spent the past five years. It was not, however, without paying a price.
His oldest daughter had just finished her freshman year of high school. Pulling up stakes, Stothers discovered, “was pretty hard on my kids.” Although he has no regrets, he looks back on the decision rather wistfully.
“We decided we would avoid moving again if we could, and if we were going to move, it would have to be something we couldn’t pass up,” Stothers said.
Other job possibilities came along, thanks to his winning ways. In his last 13 seasons as both a head coach and assistant coach in the NHL, AHL and OHL, his teams have never missed the playoffs.