Cooper signs three-year contract extension to stay Lightning coach

Cooper guided the Lightning to consecutive Stanley Cup championships the previous two seasons. They are going to are attempting to radically change the predominant team to purchase in any case three in a row since the Unusual York Islanders received four straight from 1980-83.

“To be ultimate, in this organization [contract negotiations] in actuality never ever turns into an subject,” Cooper talked about. “It be extra or much less love a family atmosphere and hundreds inaugurate traces of verbal exchange sooner than anything else happens. So this became once talked about potentially four days after we hoisted the Stanley Cup. We bought into the nitty gritty phase after we began to get back to coaching camp but for me it wasn’t about my contract, it became once making certain of your total workers and we’re all in this collectively. I didn’t need any of this to be announced or to be performed yet until all americans became once taken care of and that appears to be like likes its happened.

“I’m appropriate excited to be a phase of this organization for a number of extra years and appropriate continue to originate on this peculiar we now private web page. It be the finest plight to work. I specialise in ample has been talked about about (proprietor) Jeff Vinik and how unbelievable he’s and the relationship (fundamental manager) Julien [BriseBois] and I even private had for a replacement of years now. Tampa is my home and so it is colossal so that you just can be back, so that you just can be here for a number of extra years.”

The Lightning inaugurate the season against the Pittsburgh Penguins at Amalie Enviornment in Tampa on Tuesday (7: 30 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, SN, TVAS).

Cooper has been the Lightning’s coach since March 25, 2013 and is the longest tenured coach within the NHL .Tampa Bay is 383-197-53 in 633 video games at some stage in Cooper’s eight-plus seasons as coach. His .647 aspects percentage is 2nd in NHL history (minimum 500 video games coached) within the back of Scotty Bowman’s .657 in 2,141 video games.

Tampa Bay’s 383 wins are potentially the most within the NHL since Cooper took over as coach. The Lightning also lead the League with 2,019 targets in that span.

“Unequivocally, ‘Coop’ is the finest person for the job,” BriseBois talked about. “He is a colossal chief, spokesperson and ambassador for our organization. We’re lucky to private him as our head coach and I very powerful behold ahead to our persisted partnership.”

The Lightning private reached the Stanley Cup Closing three instances under Cooper. They received in 5 video games against the Montreal Canadiens splendid season and in six video games against the Dallas Stars in 2020. They misplaced in six video games to the Chicago Blackhawks in 2015.

In addition they reached the Eastern Convention Closing in 2016 and 2018, losing every in seven video games to the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals, respectively.

Cooper became once a finalist for the Jack Adams Award voted as the pinnacle coach within the NHL in 2013-14 and 2018-19.

He became once named the coach for Canada’s males’s ice hockey team on the 2022 Beijing Olympics on Aug. 9.

Before his arrival in Tampa Bay, Cooper spent three seasons teaching the Lightning’s American Hockey League affiliates, going 133-62-26 in 221 video games with Norfolk (2010-12) and Syracuse (2012-13).

He led Norfolk to the Calder Cup as AHL champion in 2011-12, when he also received the Louis A.R. Pieri Memorial Award as the pinnacle coach within the league. Norfolk web page a North American authentic sports file with a 28-sport winning trail that season.