Rocky Thompson

Rocky Lee Thompson (born August 8, 1977) is a Canadian former ice hockey right wing and an associate coach with the San Jose Sharks of the NHL. He was drafted in the third round, 72nd overall, by the Calgary Flames in the 1995 NHL Entry Draft. This Cree forward/defenseman[1] was born in Calgary, Alberta and raised in Whitecourt, Alberta.[2] Along with hockey, he showed promise in boxing as a teenager, winning gold in the 1993 North American Indigenous Games as well as in provincial Golden Gloves tournament championships in Alberta and Saskatchewan.[1]

For other people named Rocky Thompson, see Rocky Thompson (disambiguation).
Rocky Thompson
Thompson at the 2014 Edmonton Oilers training camp
Born (1977-08-08) August 8, 1977
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Height 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight 200 lb (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb)
Position Right Wing, Defence
Shot Right
Played for Calgary Flames
Florida Panthers
NHL Draft 72nd overall, 1995
Calgary Flames
Playing career 1996–2007

Playing career

After playing four seasons in the Western Hockey League, Thompson made his professional debut with the Flames' American Hockey League affiliate, the Saint John Flames. He appeared in 15 NHL games with the Flames during the 1997–98 and 1998–99 seasons. He made a brief return to the NHL with the Florida Panthers, appearing in ten games during the 2000–01 and 2001–02 seasons. In only 25 NHL games, Thompson racked up 117 penalty minutes.

Most of his professional career has been spent with various AHL teams, tallying numerous penalty minutes. Most recently, he played in 55 games for the Peoria Rivermen during the 2006–07 season, recording 127 penalty minutes.

Coaching career

Following his professional career, Rocky Thompson turned to coaching, becoming the assistant coach for the expansion Edmonton Oil Kings of the Western Hockey League in 2007.[2] He would later become an assistant coach for the Oklahoma City Barons.

On July 16, 2014, Thompson was promoted to assistant coach of the Edmonton Oilers.[3]

On July 3, 2015, Thompson was hired as head coach of the Windsor Spitfires.[4] In his first season, he took a Spitfires team that finished last in the conference and guided them to 87 regular-season points and second place in the OHL West Division, before losing in five games to the London Knights in the first round of the playoffs. Thompson coached the Spitfires as they became champions of the 2017 Memorial Cup.

On June 7, 2017, Thompson was hired as head coach of the Chicago Wolves of the American Hockey League.[5] He spent three seasons in the position before joining the San Jose Sharks as an associate coach on September 22, 2020.[6]

Career statistics
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1993–94 Medicine Hat Tigers WHL 68 1 4 5 166 3 0 0 0 2
1994–95 Medicine Hat Tigers WHL 63 1 6 7 220 5 0 0 0 17
1995–96 Medicine Hat Tigers WHL 71 9 20 29 260 5 2 3 5 26
1995–96 Saint John Flames AHL 4 0 0 0 33 — — — — —
1996–97 Medicine Hat Tigers WHL 47 6 9 15 170 — — — — —
1996–97 Swift Current Broncos WHL 22 3 5 8 90 10 1 2 3 22
1997–98 Saint John Flames AHL 51 3 0 3 187 18 1 1 2 47
1997–98 Calgary Flames NHL 12 0 0 0 61 — — — — —
1998–99 Calgary Flames NHL 3 0 0 0 25 — — — — —
1998–99 Saint John Flames AHL 27 2 2 4 108 — — — — —
1999–00 Saint John Flames AHL 53 2 8 10 125 — — — — —
1999–00 Louisville Panthers AHL 3 0 1 1 54 4 0 0 0 4
2000–01 Louisville Panthers AHL 55 3 5 8 193 — — — — —
2000–01 Florida Panthers NHL 4 0 0 0 19 — — — — —
2001–02 Hershey Bears AHL 42 0 3 3 143 8 1 0 1 19
2001–02 Florida Panthers NHL 6 0 0 0 12 — — — — —
2002–03 San Antonio Rampage AHL 79 1 11 12 275 3 0 0 0 4
2003–04 Toronto Roadrunners AHL 69 1 8 9 196 3 1 1 2 0
2004–05 Edmonton Roadrunners AHL 69 3 3 6 231 — — — — —
2005–06 Peoria Rivermen AHL 59 1 4 5 247 3 0 0 0 19
2006–07 Peoria Rivermen AHL 55 1 7 8 127 — — — — —
NHL totals 25 0 0 0 117 — — — — —

References
  1. "Rocky Thompson still hopeful of an NHL career | Windspeaker - AMMSA". www.ammsa.com. Retrieved 2017-10-25.
  2. "Rocky hangs up skates to coach with Oil Kings". Sherwood Park News. Sun Media Corporation. July 24, 2007. Retrieved May 5, 2012.
  3. "Rocky Thompson hired as assistant coach by Edmonton Oilers". NHL.com. July 16, 2014. Retrieved July 16, 2014.
  4. "Rocky Thompson new head coach of Windsor Spitfires". CBC.ca. July 3, 2015. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
  5. https://www.nhl.com/goldenknights/news/rocky-thompson-named-head-coach-of-ahls-chicago-wolves/c-289826900
  6. "San Jose Sharks Announce Organizational Coaching Staff". San Jose Sharks. National Hockey League. September 22, 2020. Retrieved September 22, 2020.
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