Bob Hartley Former Canadian coach of the National Hockey League Date of Birth: 09.09.1960 Country: Canada

Biography of Bob Hartley

Robert 'Bob' Hartley was born on September 9, 1960, in Hawkesbury, Ontario, Canada. He never played in the NHL, starting his coaching career with a junior team in his hometown. His leadership made the team champions, and Bob's accomplishments were recognized by the Laval Titan team from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. Under Hartley's guidance, the Laval Titan achieved success, including their performance in the 1993 Memorial Cup Youth Championship.

Hartley was hired as an assistant coach for the Cornwall Aces in the American Hockey League under Jacques Martin. When Martin became an assistant coach for the Quebec Nordiques, Hartley was named the head coach of the Aces and later held the same position with the Hershey Bears. Under his leadership, the Bears won the playoffs of the American Hockey League in 1997, becoming the Calder Cup champions.

Pierre Lacroix, the head coach of the Colorado Avalanche, learned about the achievements of the Hershey Bears and sought a replacement for Marc Crawford. Hartley became the assistant coach of the Avalanche and in his first season with the team had a mediocre record of 2-1-6. However, in mid-December 1998, his team became the winners of the Northwest Division for the fifth time, and in 1999, they defeated the San Jose Sharks in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

In the second season, Hartley helped the Colorado Avalanche win the division title for the sixth consecutive time and achieve victory over the Phoenix Coyotes in the playoffs and a rematch against the Red Wings. The third season was the most successful, with the Avalanche winning the division for the seventh time and receiving the President's Trophy with a record of 52-16-10-4. In June 2001, the team defeated the New Jersey Devils in the seven-game final series, becoming the Stanley Cup champions for the second time.

In the following season, the Avalanche once again won the division title but fell short of reaching the Stanley Cup finals by losing in the seventh game of the Western Conference finals to the Detroit Red Wings. Hartley left the Avalanche with a regular season record of 193-109-48 and a playoff record of 49-31. He became the only head coach in the team's history to have 40 or more wins in the first four seasons.

A month after leaving the Avalanche, Hartley took over the Atlanta Thrashers, replacing head coach Curt Fraser. Under Hartley's guidance, the team improved their organization and defense. Unfortunately, a car accident resulted in the death of forward Dan Snyder, and the team's star player Dany Heatley suffered serious injuries and missed most of the season. The Thrashers did not make the playoffs but set new records for the number of wins and points in a season.

Hartley's coaching helped young star Ilya Kovalchuk share the Maurice Richard Trophy. In the 2006-2007 season, the Thrashers won their first Southeast Division championship and made their first playoff appearance, but they were swept by the New York Rangers in the first round.

On October 17, 2007, Robert was fired and replaced by Don Waddell, the current general manager of the Thrashers. Currently, Hartley is a successful hockey analyst for the French cable sports channel RDS. Bob is married to Micheline, and they have a daughter named Kristine and a son named Steve.