The Arizona Coyotes have added another assistant to their coaching staff, hiring Mario Duhamel to a multi-year contract. He joins head coach Andre Tourigny as well as assistants Phil Housley, Cory Stillman, and goaltending coach Corey Schwab. Coyotes GM Bill Armstrong released a statement on his new coach:
We are very pleased to have Mario join the Coyotes organization and Head Coach André Tourigny’s staff. He brings extensive hockey knowledge and coaching experience to our team, and we are confident that he will be a great addition. We are also pleased to have Phil, Cory and Corey return this season. They are all quality people and very good coaches.
Duhamel, 46, follows Tourigny from the Ottawa 67’s of the OHL where he served as associate coach for the last three seasons. He has years of experience in the QMJHL as both an assistant and head coach, and even served as a video coach with the Colorado Avalanche for two seasons under Patrick Roy (Tourigny was an assistant coach on that staff).
Perhaps the bigger announcement today was that Housley, Stillman and Schwab will return in their roles under Tourigny. All three served in their respective roles under Rick Tocchet, and provide a strong staff for the rookie head coach to lean on as he transitions back to the NHL. The Coyotes underwent some drastic changes this offseason in terms of on-ice personnel and have collected a huge number of draft picks to kick start a rebuild. This coaching staff will be asked to navigate what is expected to be a difficult season, given the lack of high-end talent on the roster.