DU Alum Kevin Dineen Gets NHL Coaching Job

(above) DU Alum Kevin Dineen is the new head coach of the Florida Panthers

The Florida Panthers have formally introduced Former University of Denver hockey star Kevin Dineen as the franchise's 11th head coach.

The Panthers made the announcement at a news conference Wednesday at the BankAtlantic Center. Dineen replaces Pete DeBoer, who was fired on April 10, one day after completing his third season behind the Florida bench.

Dineen spent the past six seasons as coach of the Portland Pirates of the American Hockey League.

In Portland, Dineen compiled a mark of 266-155-59 and led the Pirates to the playoffs in five of his six seasons.

Kevin played in more than 1,100 National Hockey League games and is one of only seven players in the league’s history to score more than 350 goals, while registering more than 2,000 penalty minutes. 

Dineen's father, Bill, played and coached in the NHL and his brothers Gord and Peter also were NHL players. Another brother, Shawn, played and graduated from DU and is a scout for the Nashville Predators.  Another brother, Jerry is the video coach of the New York Rangers.

Matt Laatsch Named Assistant Coach In AHL

(left) Matt Laatsch will be an assistant coach with a new team next season next season

From: Hockey Fights.com

The Anaheim Ducks announced today that the National Hockey League (NHL) club has named Gord Dineen head coach of the Iowa Chops, Anaheim’s primary development affiliate in the American Hockey League (AHL). In addition, the Ducks named DU Alum Matt Laatsch assistant coach at Iowa.

Laatsch, 28 (8/19/80), served as one of two assistant coaches in Portland last season, where the team advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals of the Calder Cup Playoffs. Prior to joining the Ducks organization, Laatsch was an assistant coach at the University of Denver during the 2006-07 season. Laatsch was a member of both University of Denver teams that won back-to-back NCAA National Championships in 2004 and 2005.

Gord Dineen is the brother of former DU players Shawn & Kevin Dineen.

DU Alum Is NHL Scout With Nashville Predators

From: New England Hockey Journal

(left) Shawn Dineen played for DU from 1978-81 and is now a scout for the Nashville Predators

Younger, cheaper, better.

So reads the ongoing agenda of the Nashville Predators as they prepare for the upcoming NHL Entry Draft.

Last year, they bid adieu to high-scoring (and big-ticket) forwards such as Paul Kariya and Peter Forsberg and still managed to make the playoffs this year.

But as a small-market team with new ownership and some tough decisions concerning the re-signing of its Restricted Free Agents coming up, Nashville is hoping to play the ends of production against the fiscal middle.

And with two draft selections in the top 15 (Florida’s at No. 9 and their own at 15), the Preds have a chance to gain two impact players – although that impact likely won’t be felt immediately.

At the top of Nashville’s wish list is a scoring forward, although whether they Predators would risk taking one (or two) of the highly ranked Russians with such premium choices is debatable.

“If you take a look at our NHL club,” said Predators’ pro scout & DU Hockey Alumnus Shawn Dineen (brother of DU alum Kevin Dineen), who operates out his Connecticut home base, “and take a look at what would be our best prospects, it’s all at the back end. Defensively, we’ve done a fabulous job of drafting. There’s actually an imbalance there. We really have some incredible young defensemen who are on the upswing. I would think going into the draft that either we’re going to make a move with one of those young defensemen and make room for some of those new guys and keep the salaries down, (or) get a top six forward. That’s where our situation is.”

The Preds hit the blue line mother lode in 2003, when they grabbed Ryan Suter (7th overall), Kevin Klein (37th), and Shea Weber (49th). Suter and Weber have both emerged as top-six stalwarts, and Klein is on the verge of getting there.

All three, however, are RFAs – with Suter and Weber in particular likely to command steep pay raises. Defenseman Jonathon Blum (Vancouver/WHL, 23rd) was Nashville’s top choice last year.

“Our philosophy,” said Dineen, “has been to draft the best player available. It just so happens that they’ve been on the back end.”

In any event, Preds General Manager David Poile (a Northeastern grad), and Director of Amateur Scouting Jeff Kealty (the former Boston University standout), will have some interesting options open to them, including trading down to acquire even more draft picks.

As for their recent drafts, there’s both good news and bad news. The good news is that Poile and Co. have made a string of excellent picks in the first round since 2000. Each of the Preds’ top selections from 2000-04 can be considered NHL impact players. The bad news is that three of them are blossoming as Philadelphia Flyers.

Scott Hartnell (2000, 6th), Scottie Upshall (2002, 6th) and Ryan Parent (2005) were all dispatched to Philly in 2007 – the steep cost of bringing in Forsberg in at the trade deadline.

On the other hand, Suter, defenseman Dan Hamhuis (2001, 7th) and right winger Alexander Radulov (2004, 15th) all remain.

“Radulov is still finding his way,” said Dineen. “He’s got deficiencies, but he does things that are special.”

More problematic for Nashville has been its failure to get value out of picks beyond the first round.

Of the sub-first rounders taken since 2000, only Weber and winger Jordin Tootoo (2001, 98th) have played a full season in Tunetown.

That trend could reverse if one or more of their recent mid-to-late choices can make the jump from the Preds’ AHL farm club in Milwaukee.

It’s possible that center Cal O’Reilly (2005, 150), who led the Admirals in scoring (16-63-79) or defensemen Cody Franson (2005, 79) or Janne Niskala (2004, 147th) could challenge for big league jobs.

All three showed marked improvement in the latter months of the season, with Franson (11 goals) and Niskala (19 goals) both displaying some power-play pop. But it may be that hard-hitting young German blueliner Alexander Sulzer (2003, 92nd) winds up in Nashville ahead of the others.

“He (Sulzer) was capable of playing this year (in Nashville),” said Dineen, “but we didn’t have room, so he never got a call up.”

Further down the road, Nashville can look forward to delivery of collegians such as left wing Blake Geoffrion (Wisconsin, 2006, 56th), Ryan Flynn (Minnesota, 2006, 176th), and left wing Ryan Thang (Notre Dame, 2007, 81st), and OHL products such as goalie Jeremy Smith (Plymouth, 2007, 54th) and center Nick Spaling (Kitchener, 2007 58th).

All of them have the potential to make the Predators younger and cheaper.

And who knows, maybe even better.

STANLEY CUP COMES TO PORTLAND

Posted by: du78

As most of you know, former DUer and NHL great, Kevin Dineen is the coach of the Portland Pirates in the AHL. A few weeks ago DU alum & USCHO.com poster Bagman, went to Maine to hang with his old DU buddies and catch some hockey games. It just so happened that the Stanley Cup was in Portland (farm team of Anaheim Ducks). For the second time this year Bagman was able to be with the "Holy Grail" of hockey.

Below are some photos from the weekend.

(Above) Kevin Dineen, Bagman & Shawn Dineen, all 3 DU alums

(above) The boys pose with proud father Bill Dineen who played and coached in the NHL

DU Hockey Legends

KEVIN DINEEN

Kevin Dineen was born in Quebec City during the years his father was playing for the local AHL team. Kevin is the son of former NHL player and head coach Bill Dineen. He spent most of his childhood in Seattle, while his father coached the minor-league team, but lived in several other cities as his father pursued his coaching career. Kevin played one year of Junior B hockey with the Toronto St. Michael's team, then played two years with the University of Denver where he scored 28 goals and 35 assists in two seasons. He is the younger brother of former minor-leaguer Shawn Dineen and former NHL players Peter Dineen and Gord Dineen. Shawn preceded Kevin at DU. He is the older brother of former minor-leaguer Jerry Dineen. Kevin turned pro in 1984-85 with the AHL's Binghamton Whalers and scored 15 goals in 25 games before making his NHL debut during the season. Kevin’s greatest success was in the NHL where he spent 18 seasons, one of the longest NHL careers of any DU player.

Selected in the third round of the 1982 NHL Entry Draft by the Hartford Whalers, Kevin Dineen made his NHL debut on December 3, 1984 against the Montreal Canadiens. It was against those same Canadiens less than two weeks later that Dineen scored his first NHL goal against Doug Soetaert finishing his rookie season with 25 goals.

In just his second year with the Whalers, Dineen helped the club improve 15 points in the standings and advance to the playoffs for the first time in five years. In 1985-86, the Whalers lost in a game-seven overtime thriller against the eventual Stanley Cup champions from Montreal. In 1986-87, the Whalers followed up a strong post-season with a team best 43 wins and 93 points to win their first regular season Adams Division title. Dineen led the Whalers with 40 goals and won the Shawmut Bank Favorite Whaler Award. He represented the NHL at the Rendez-Vous '87 series against the Soviet All-Stars in February and in 1987-88, he co-led the Whalers with 25 goals and was voted to play in his first mid-season All-Star Game.

On November 13, 1991, Dineen was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers where he got to play under head coach-dad Bill Dineen through 1992-93 and was the team captain for the 1993-94 season. In 1992-93, Dineen finished the season with a career-high six-point game against the Sabres and his fifth career 30-goal season.

In the shortened 1994-95 season, Dineen was a runner-up for the Masterton Trophy and helped the Flyers make the playoffs for the first time in six years as the team advanced all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals.

Midway through the following season, Dineen was traded back to the Whalers, and in 1996-97, won his second Whalers' True Grit Award as he led the team with five game-winning goals. Dineen and the Whalers moved to Carolina in 1997-98 and played two seasons with the Hurricanes before signing as a free agent with the Ottawa Senators in 1999-00.

After only one season in Ottawa, Dineen was claimed by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2000 NHL Expansion Draft and went on to play two seasons in Columbus before retiring from the game four games into the 2002-03 season.

Throughout his career Dineen represented Canada at the 1984 Olympic Winter Games in Sarjevo and again in 1985 at the World Championships where the team won a silver medal. A member of Team Canada that beat the Soviets in the 1987 Canada Cup tournament, Kevin Dineen went on to play over 1,188 games in the NHL.

Coaching Career: Named Portland (AHL) head coach on July 18, 2005, a job which he still retains.

NHL AWARDS AND HONORS
Bud Light NHL Man of the Year: 1990-91 (Hartford)
Sporting News NHL All-Star Second Team: 1986-87 (Hartford)
Hockey News NHL All-Star Second Team: 1986-87 (Hartford)
Hockey Digest NHL All-Star First Team: 1988-89 (Hartford)
All-Star Game: 1988, 1989 (Hartford)
Hartford Kravitz Award (MVP): 1988-89
Hartford Top Gun Award (Points Leader): 1988-89
Hartford Three-Star Award (Three-Stars Leader): 1988-89
Hartford Booster Club MVP: 1988-89
Hartford Favorite Whaler Award (Fan Vote): 1986-87
Hartford True Grit Award (Most Inspirational): 1985-86 (first winner), 1996-97
Hartford Man of Year Award: 1986-87
Hartford Founders Trophy (Community Service): 1984-85 (shared), 1987-88 (shared)
Hartford Dodge Ram Tough Award (Special Goals Leader): 1988-89
Philadelphia Class Guy Award (Media Vote): 1991-92
Philadelphia Captain: Oct. 5, 1993, until Sept. 6, 1994
Hartford/Carolina Captain: October 1996 until October 1998
Hartford/Carolina Records: Most career penalty minutes (1,439), most short-handed goals in one season (4 in 1984-85)
Hartford Goals Leader: 1986-87 (40), 1987-88 (25, tie), 1988-89 (45)
Hartford Playoffs Points Leader: 1986 (13, tie), 1988 (8)
Hartford Playoffs Goals Leader: 1986 (6), 1988 (4), 1990 (3, tie)
Carolina Playoffs Penalty-Minutes Leader: 1999 (8, tie)
Philadelphia Playoffs Goals Leader: 1995 (6, tie)

Compiled from Legends of Hockey and hockeydraftcentral.com by du78