How Many Black Coaches Are There in the NHL?

In the NHL, the Pittsburgh Penguins have the most black coaches of any team. The Los Angeles Kings, Buffalo Sabres and Chicago Blackhawks each have two black coaches, while the Anaheim Ducks, Arizona Coyotes, Boston Bruins, Detroit Red Wings, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, Ottawa Senators, Philadelphia Flyers, San Jose Sharks, St. Louis Blues, Tampa Bay Lightning, Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks and Washington Capitals each have one black coach.

Introduction

As of the 2019-2020 NHL season, there are zero black coaches in the NHL. This is despite the fact that black players have been a part of the league since 1954, when Willie O’Ree made his debut with the Boston Bruins. In the intervening years, several black players have gone on to have successful careers in the NHL, but none have made the jump to become a head coach.

History of black coaches in the NHL

The National Hockey League (NHL) is a professional ice hockey league in North America, currently comprising 31 teams: 24 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is considered to be the premier professional ice hockey league in the world, and one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada. As of the 2019–20 season, the NHL has 21 black head coaches, which is the most of any professional sport league in North America.

The first black coach in the NHL

In 1998, the NHL hired its first black coach when the Boston Bruins named Craig MacTavish as their head coach. MacTavish had previously served as the head coach of the Edmonton Oilers and the St. Louis Blues. He is currently a broadcaster for the NHL Network.

Other black coaches in the NHL include:
-Barclay Plager, who coached the Blues from 1982 to 1984
-John Stevens, who coached the Philadelphia Flyers from 2006 to 2010
-Tony McKegney, who coached the Winnipeg Jets from 1990 to 1992

Currently, there are no black head coaches in the NHL.

The current black coaches in the NHL

The NHL has seen a number of great black coaches over the years. The first black coach in the NHL was Barry Melrose, who coached the Los Angeles Kings from 1992 to 1995. Melrose is now a television analyst for NHL games.

Other notable black coaches in the NHL include Kevin Dineen, who coached the Florida Panthers from 2011 to 2013, and Willie Desjardins, who coached the Vancouver Canucks from 2014 to 2017.

As of 2018, there are only two black coaches in the NHL: Gerard Gallant of the Vegas Golden Knights and Mike Yeo of the St. Louis Blues.

The future of black coaches in the NHL

The number of black coaches in the NHL

As the NHL looks to address a lack of diversity among its coaching ranks, the question arises: How many black coaches are there in the NHL?

According to a recent report by The Athletic, there are currently no black head coaches in the NHL. However, there are several black assistant coaches, including those on the staffs of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Tampa Bay Lightning and Washington Capitals.

The report goes on to say that while the number of black players in the NHL has increased in recent years, the number of black coaches has not kept pace. In fact, the percentage of black players in the league has nearly doubled since 1998, but the number of black head coaches has remained static at just two percent.

There are a number of factors that may contribute to this lack of diversity among NHL coaching staffs. For one, hockey has long been considered a white-dominated sport, both in terms of its participants and its leadership. Additionally, the pool of qualified black candidates for coaching positions may be smaller than that of other groups.

Still, as the league looks to increase its racial and ethnic diversity among all levels of management, it seems likely that we will see more black NHL coaches in the near future.

The percentage of black coaches in the NHL

According to a recent study, the percentage of black coaches in the NHL is significantly lower than the percentage of black players in the league. This discrepancy has been a source of consternation for many people, who believe that black coaches are being unjustly overlooked.

There are a number of possible explanations for this disparity. Some have suggested that black coaches are not given the same opportunity to prove themselves as their white counterparts. Others believe that the pool of potential black coaches is simply smaller than the pool of potential white coaches.

Whatever the reason, it is clear that there is a lack of diversity among NHL coaches. This lack of diversity may have negative consequences for both black players and black fans of the sport.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the NHL has made some strides in recent years to increase racial diversity among its coaches. However, the league still has a long way to go in terms of achieving true parity. As of right now, black coaches make up only about 7% of all NHL head coaches. This number is significant because it is significantly lower than the percentage of black players in the NHL, which is about 15%. There are a number of possible explanations for this discrepancy, but one key factor is that most black NHL players have not had the opportunity to coach at the highest level of professional hockey. This lack of experience is likely a major contributing factor to the low number of black NHL coaches.