Colorado Avalanche Hire Jared Bednar as Seventh Head Coach

The Colorado Avalanche have found their bench boss, as they have hired Jared Bednar to replace the vacancy left behind by the departure of Patrick Roy. 

Bednar, 44, was the head coach for the Lake Erie Monsters, the American Hockey League affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets this past season. He served on the Blue Jackets minor league staff, since the 2012-2013 AHL season. He was promoted to head coach of the franchise prior to the start of 2014-2015 season, while they were still the Springfield Falcons. 

The Falcons went 38-28-10 under Bednar’s first season. Columbus moved their AHL affiliate from Springfield, Massachusetts to Cleveland, Ohio before the start of last season. The Monsters went 43-22-11 during the 2105-2016 AHL campaign, as Bednar led them to a Calder Cup Championship. 

Bednar said, “My family and I are thrilled to be heading to Denver to begin this new challenge. I feel ready for this role with the Avalanche and I am grateful for the trust that [team president] Josh Kroenke, [general manager] Joe Sakic and the organization has shown me. This is a great sports market with a passionate fan base and I can’t wait to get to work. I would like to thank the Columbus Blue Jackets organization for the opportunity that they gave me.”

In 2009, he won a Kelly Cup Championship with the South Carolina Stingrays of the ECHL. The following season he became an assistant coach with the AHL’s Abbotsford Heat, before joining the Peoria Rivermen of the AHL in 2010. 

Sakic said, “After profiling the type of coach I wanted for our team and going through an interview process with several good candidates, I believe that Jared Bednar is the best candidate to lead this team behind the bench. Jared’s track record as head coach in the American Hockey League speaks for itself and he is considered to be one of the top up and coming coaches in our business.”

According to the Denver Post, Bednar was one of three finalists for the coaching vacancy. 

Washington Capitals assistant coach, Lane Lambert and Chicago Blackhawks assistant coach, Kevin Dineen were his competition. 

Sakic added, “Even though we had to accelerate the process with training camp approaching, we feel we met some real strong candidates with a lot of potential to become head coaches in the NHL in the near future. I would like to thank the general managers who gave us permission to talk to key staff members at such a precarious time.”