Ted Nolan

Ted Nolan
Ted Nolan at the 2006 NHL awards
Born	(1958-04-07) April 7, 1958 (age 66) Garden River First Nation, Ontario, Canada
Height	6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight	185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb)
Position	Left Wing
Shot	Left
Played for	Detroit Red Wings Pittsburgh Penguins
NHL Draft	78th overall, 1978 Detroit Red Wings
Playing career	1978–1986

Theodore John Nolan (born April 7, 1958) is an Indigenous Canadian who has made significant contributions to professional hockey both as a player and as a coach. His career highlights include playing as a left winger in the National Hockey League (NHL) and serving as the head coach for teams such as the Buffalo Sabres and the Latvia men's national ice hockey team.

From July 2017 until May 2018 he was head coach of the Poland men's national ice hockey team. He played three seasons in the National Hockey League for the Detroit Red Wings and the Pittsburgh Penguins. He also coached the New York Islanders, after serving as assistant coach for one season with the Hartford Whalers. On November 13, 2013, the Buffalo Sabres re-hired Nolan as interim head coach; he remained in the position until April 12, 2015.

Playing career

As a player, he played left-wing for the Ontario Hockey Association's Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, the Kansas City Red Wings of the Central Hockey League, and the Adirondack Red Wings, Rochester Americans and Baltimore Skipjacks of the American Hockey League. He also played for the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League from early to mid-1980s.

Coaching career

Ontario Hockey League

Nolan became head coach of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in 1988, as a mid-season replacement and coached there until the end of the 1994 season. Nolan led the Greyhounds to the three consecutive Memorial Cup tournament berths, winning the Canadian national junior championship in 1993.

Buffalo Sabres, 1995–1997

Nolan was hired as an assistant coach by the Hartford Whalers prior to the 1994–95 NHL season. After one season in Hartford, he accepted the position of head coach with the NHL's Buffalo Sabres. In his second season in Buffalo, he led the team to the Northeast Division title and was awarded the Jack Adams Trophy as the league's top coach.

His relationships with all-star goaltender Dominik Hašek and general manager John Muckler, however, were strained. Hašek, who sided with Muckler, stated in an interview during 1997 NHL Awards Ceremony that "it would be better for me if he (Nolan) did not return." Muckler, who had just been voted the NHL's 1996–97 Executive of the Year, was the first casualty of this toxic situation and was fired prior to the 1997–98 season. New general manager Darcy Regier was given the option of choosing his own coach. Rather than fire Nolan, whose two-year contract had just expired, Regier offered him a one-year extension, reportedly for $500,000. After winning Coach of the Year honors, Nolan found the offer insulting and rejected it. Regier subsequently pulled the contract off the table and hired Lindy Ruff as the Sabres' new head coach.

Post-Sabres career

Following his departure from Buffalo, Nolan was offered NHL coaching jobs in 1997 by the Tampa Bay Lightning (head coach) and in 1998 by the New York Islanders (assistant coach). Nolan declined both offers. Nolan was not offered an NHL coaching job again until May 2006, a span of eight years, with reports of his role in the firing of Sabres' GM John Muckler being the reason no team would hire him. ^[1]

On December 16, 2005, Nolan was the victim of racial harassment during a Wildcats road game against the Chicoutimi Saguenéens. Fans in the stands shouted racial slurs at him and directed gestures such as the "tomahawk chop" and shooting a bow and arrow towards him as he stood behind the Moncton bench. The incident, he said later, left him shaking with anger and humiliation. The fans' behavior was condemned both by the QMJHL commissioner and Saguenéens management, the latter of which issued a formal apology to Nolan. ^{[2] [3]}

Nolan's Wildcats reached the 2006 Memorial Cup final only to lose to the Quebec Remparts.

New York Islanders, 2006–2008

On June 8, 2006, New York Islanders' owner Charles Wang dismissed interim coach Brad Shaw and announced the hiring of Nolan as the team's new head coach. New York Post hockey columnist Larry Brooks quickly criticized Wang for hiring Nolan at the same time as new general manager Neil Smith, rather than allowing Smith to hire a coach of his own choosing. ^[4]

In his first season with the Islanders in 2006–07, he led the team to a 92-point season and its first playoff berth since 2003–04. On April 20, 2007, Nolan's Islanders fell in five games to his former team, the top-seeded Buffalo Sabres.

In his second season, Nolan led the Islanders to a record of 35–38–9 for 79 points. On July 14, 2008, he was fired by then-Islanders' general manager Garth Snow.

Rochester Americans, 2009–2011

On July 2, 2009, Nolan agreed to a one-year contract with the Rochester Americans to become their Vice President of Hockey Operations. He remained with the team through 2011, when the team was sold to Terrence Pegula.

Latvia men's national ice hockey team

On August 3, 2011, Latvian Ice Hockey Federation announced that Nolan has agreed to become the head coach of Latvia men's national ice hockey team. ^{[5] [6]} He coached Latvia at the 2012 and 2013 IIHF World Championships, finishing 10th and 11th respectively. In 2013, Latvia qualified for the 2014 Winter Olympics with Nolan behind the bench.

At the Sochi Olympic Games, Latvia finished last in its group during the round robin tournament. They then upset favoured Switzerland in the qualification playoffs 3–1. Advancing to the quarterfinals, Latvia lost a hard-fought match to defending Olympic champions Team Canada 2–1. It was Latvia's best-ever Olympic result as they finished eighth overall. ^[1]

Return to the Buffalo Sabres, 2013–2015

On November 13, 2013, Nolan returned to the Buffalo Sabres, being named the interim head coach following the firing of both head coach Ron Rolston and general manager Darcy Regier. Nolan was hired by Pat LaFontaine, who had also joined the team as president of hockey operations before resigning three months later. ^[1]

Despite a relatively poor on-ice record, Tim Murray, Regier's replacement as general manager, expressed interest in keeping Nolan as permanent head coach. Nolan signed a three-year contract extension on March 31, 2014. However, on April 12, 2015, Murray fired Nolan and his assistants, stating that he and Nolan "didn't have a great relationship" and suggesting that Nolan expected to be consulted on the team's trade deadline moves, saying "But going back to player personnel decisions, going back to him not being consulted on trade deadline, those are things that I think are normal that maybe somebody else doesn't think is normal." ^[7]

Poland men's national ice hockey team

Nolan started coaching the Polish national team in 2017. The team played in the 2018 IIHF World Championship Division I A and were relegated to Division I B. He resigned shortly thereafter.

Personal

Nolan and his wife Sandra have two sons who played in the NHL, Brandon Nolan, a Vancouver Canucks draft pick who last played for the AHL's Albany River Rats, and Jordan Nolan, who last played for the AHL's Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.

Nolan is a member of the Ojibwe tribe, a First Nations people. He was raised with eleven siblings in poverty on the Garden River reserve near Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. The house had no electricity or running water. At age 14 his father, Stan, died of heart failure, and his mother, Rose, was killed by a drunk driver when he was 24. ^[8]

Awards and achievements

Ted Nolan was chosen as a role model in the national native alcohol drug and abuse program in 1986. Nolan was also chosen for the Kiwanis Citizen of the year in 1991, and is an active member of the Aboriginal community. ^[9]

• 1996–97 – Jack Adams Award Winner ^[10]
• 1994 - National Aboriginal Achievement Award, now the Indspire Awards ^[11]

Coaching statistics

Note: Head coaching statistics only.

NHL

		Regular season						Post season
Year	Team	G	W	L	OTL/T	Pts	Finish	G	W	L	Result
1995–96	Buffalo Sabres	82	33	42	7	72	5th Northeast Division	Did not qualify
1996–97	Buffalo Sabres	82	40	30	12	92	1st Northeast Division	12	5	7	Lost in conference semi-finals (PHI)
2006–07	New York Islanders	82	40	30	12	92	4th Atlantic Division	5	1	4	Lost in conference quarter-finals (BUF)
2007–08	New York Islanders	81	34	38	9	79	5th Atlantic Division	Did not qualify
2013–14	Buffalo Sabres	62	17	36	9	43	8th Atlantic Division	Did not qualify
2014–15	Buffalo Sabres	82	23	51	8	54	8th Atlantic Division	Did not qualify
NHL Totals		472	188	227	57	433		17	6	11

Junior leagues

			Regular season						Post season
Year	Team	League	G	W	L	OTL/T	Pts	Finish	G	W	L	Result
1989–90	Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds	OHL	66	18	42	6	42	7th Emms Division	Did not qualify
1990–91	Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds	OHL	66	42	21	3	87	1st Emms Division	14	12	2	Won J. Ross Robertson Cup (OSH)
1991–92	Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds	OHL	66	41	19	6	88	1st Emms Division	19	12	7	Won J. Ross Robertson Cup (NBC)
1992–93	Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds	OHL	66	38	23	5	81	1st Emms Division	14	9	5	Won the Memorial Cup (PET)
1993–94	Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds	OHL	66	35	24	7	71	2nd Emms Division	14	10	4	Lost in semi-finals (DET)
2005–06	Moncton Wildcats	QMJHL	70	52	15	3	107	1st Eastern Division	21	16	5	Won President's Cup (QUE)

  – Denotes championship season

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1975–76	Kenora Thistles	MJHL		51	24	32	56	86		—	—	—	—	—
1976–77	Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds	OMJHL		60	8	16	24	109		—	—	—	—	—
1977–78	Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds	OMJHL		66	14	30	44	106		—	—	—	—	—
1978–79	Kansas City Red Wings	CHL		73	12	38	50	66		4	1	2	3	0
1979–80	Adirondack Red Wings	AHL		75	16	24	40	106		5	0	1	1	0
1980–81	Adirondack Red Wings	AHL		76	22	28	50	86		18	6	10	16	11
1981–82	Adirondack Red Wings	AHL		39	12	18	30	81		—	—	—	—	—
1981–82	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		41	4	13	17	45		—	—	—	—	—
1982–83	Adirondack Red Wings	AHL		78	24	40	64	106		6	2	5	7	14
1983–84	Adirondack Red Wings	AHL		31	10	16	26	76		7	2	3	5	18
1983–84	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		19	1	2	3	26		—	—	—	—	—
1984–85	Rochester Americans	AHL		65	28	34	62	152		5	4	0	4	18
1985–86	Baltimore Skipjacks	AHL		10	4	4	8	19		—	—	—	—	—
1985–86	Pittsburgh Penguins	NHL		18	1	1	2	34		—	—	—	—	—
AHL Totals				374	116	164	280	626		41	14	19	33	61
NHL Totals				78	6	16	22	105		—	—	—	—	—

Philanthropy

The Ted Nolan Foundation: Established by Nolan in 2004, the foundation is dedicated to supporting the educational and athletic aspirations of female First Nations students through the Rose Nolan Memorial Scholarship. Named in honor of his mother, the scholarship provides $5,000 annually to recipients who demonstrate academic achievement, athletic involvement, and strong community engagement.

3|NOLANS First Nation Hockey School: In 2013, Nolan, alongside his sons, founded the 3|NOLANS First Nation Hockey School. This initiative offers a 5-day hockey skills camp aimed at boys and girls aged 7 to 15. The program focuses on enhancing hockey abilities among First Nation youth and emphasizes the importance of active, healthy living. Beyond sports skills, the camp encourages participants to become positive role models in their communities. ^[12]

See also

• Notable Aboriginal people of Canada

References

1. Shoalts, David (3 March 2014). "Shoalts: Nolan's future is uncertain in the wake of LaFontaine's departure". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 13 April 2015.
2. "Ted Nolan given apology for QMJHL incident". cbc.ca. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation . Retrieved 21 December 2023.
3. "Saguenéens apologize to Nolan for fans' racism". The Globe and Mail. The Canadian Press. 20 December 2005. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
4. ISLE HANDLE IT Archived 2006-06-15 at the Wayback Machine , New York Post June 11, 2006
5. "LHF apstiprina Latvijas izlases vecāko treneri". Latvian Ice Hoceky Federation. 2011-08-03. Retrieved 2011-08-03.(in Latvian)
6. The Canadian Press (3 August 2011). "Former Jack Adams winner Ted Nolan hired to coach Latvian national team". NHL.com. Retrieved 5 August 2011.
7. "Sabres fire coach Nolan after 23-win season".
8. MacGregor, Roy (8 December 2007). "Persevering Ted Nolan is making a difference - The Globe and Mail". The Globe and Mail .
9. "Ted Nolan". Indspire. 20 November 2014.
10. "Legends of Hockey – NHL Player Search – Player – Ted Nolan". Hockey Hall of Fame and Museum. 2001–2008. Retrieved 2009-10-03.
11. "Indspire Laureates". Indspire. Archived from the original on 2016-03-23. Retrieved 2016-07-17.
12. "Ted Nolan – Three Nolans".

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com , or  Eliteprospects.com , or  Hockey-Reference.com , or  The Internet Hockey Database