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"Behind The ECHL Benches"
Karl Taylor, Ontario Reign

October 6, 2009

Named the first head coach of Ontario on June 27, 2008, Karl Taylor led the Reign to first place in the Pacific Division with a 38-29-6 record in their first season.

Taylor, who works each season at the Rookie Development Camp for the Los Angeles Kings, was head coach and director of hockey operations for Reading for three seasons from 2005-08. The Royals were 112-82-22, advanced to the Kelly Cup Playoffs two times and had more than 100 call ups to the American Hockey League involving almost 70 players during his tenure.

Taylor was selected to coach the American Conference in the 2006 ECHL All-Star Game, becoming the sixth first-year coach since 1996 to step behind the bench for the midseason event.

Before taking over behind the Royals bench, he helped rebuild the men’s ice hockey program at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada and led the team to back-to-back playoff appearances. In his second season with Waterloo, the team went 13-8-3, including an eight-game unbeaten streak, and Taylor was named Ontario University Athletics West Coach of the Year. Taylor’s first head coaching assignment was with Red Deer College in Alberta where he spent three seasons after completing two years as an assistant coach at his alma mater, the University of New Brunswick, and one season as a volunteer assistant coach for Fredericton in the American Hockey League.

As a player, Taylor was one of the team captains for three seasons at UNB and in 1995 was presented with the Mark Jeffrey Memorial Award for leadership, dedication and commitment to the team as well as the Alumni Merit Award for academic and athletic excellence. Selected to the UNB Athletics Ring of Distinction, Taylor received his bachelor’s degree in physical education in 1995.

Former ECHL coaches working as head coaches in the NHL are Bruce Boudreau of the Washington Capitals and Scott Gordon of the New York Islanders while former ECHL player Dan Bylsma is the head coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Boudreau, who coached Mississippi for three seasons winning the Kelly Cup championship in 1999, was named NHL Coach of the Year in 2007-08 becoming the first former ECHL coach to receive the award. Peter Laviolette, who began his coaching career with the Wheeling Nailers, led Carolina Hurricanes to the Stanley Cup in 2006. There are 15 assistant coaches in the NHL who were players or coaches in the ECHL.

There are 10 head coaches and 18 assistant coaches in the American Hockey League with ECHL experience.

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