Senators extend Troy Mann as head coach of AHL’s Belleville Senators

“When we hired Troy three summers ago, we knew we were getting someone who had a strong track record in developing players,” said Ottawa Senators general manager Pierre Dorion. “With where we were as an organization at that time, and with all that has transpired with regards to stockpiling prospects since, the timing could not have been better. Troy has played a vital role in helping with both the development and preparation of countless players, many of whom have recently assumed important roles in Ottawa. We’re pleased to reach an agreement with Troy to see him return to Belleville.”

The second head coach in Belleville Senators’ history, Mann, 51, has led the B-Sens to a record of 93-67-8-6 over the last three campaigns. In 2019-20, the team was poised to qualify for the Calder Cup Playoffs for the first time when it led the North Division by six points upon the COVID-19 schedule pause. Subsequently cancelled, the season ended with three of Mann’s players, including two rookies in Alex Formenton and Josh Norris, ranking inside the top-10 in AHL scoring. Norris was later named the recipient of the Dudley (Red) Garrett Memorial Award as the AHL’s outstanding rookie.

A native of Campbellton, N.B., Mann spent the four seasons prior to his hiring in Belleville as the head coach of the Hershey Bears, the AHL affiliate of the 2018 Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals. While there, he coached nine members of that year’s cup-winning Capitals team and led the Bears to two Atlantic Division titles, was a 2016 Calder Cup finalist, and tallied a 162-102-22-18 record over 304 regular-season games. He also served as an assistant coach with Hershey from 2009-10 to 2012-13, during which time the Bears claimed the 2010 Calder Cup.

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