A former Winnipeg (Kootenay) Ice head coach has been named bench boss of the New York Rangers farm team, the Hartford Wolfpack.
Kris Knoblauch, who was previously serving as an assistant coach with the Philadelphia Flyers over the last two years, was announced as the WolfPack head coach on Monday.
He got his start in the WHL with the Prince Albert Raiders as an assistant coach before moving over to the same role with the Ice for three years. He graduated to the head coach role and guided the Ice to a championship in 2011.
He moved over to the OHL and coached the Erie Otters for five years, getting the chance to mentor players like Connor Brown, Alex Debrincat, Andre Burakovsky, and Connor McDavid. Knoblauch also coached the Otters to an OHL title in 2015.
During his tenure in the OHL, he picked up coach of the year honours in 2015-16 and was the first team in CHL history to post four consecutive 50-win seasons.
In addition to his major-junior coaching resume, Konblauch has also served with national teams, such as an assistant coach with 2017 World Junior Championship and as head coach with the 2015 World U17 Hockey Challenge.