Keith McCambridge (born February 1, 1974) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...

coach and a former

defenceman Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the latter a reference to ...

. He was previously the head coach of the

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 season, every team in the le ...

Manitoba Moose The Manitoba Moose are a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, and a member of the American Hockey League (AHL). The team plays its home games at Canada Life Centre, the home arena of its parent club, Winnipeg Jets ...

/ St. John's IceCaps team from 2011 to 2016 and the Hartford Wolf Pack from 2017 to 2019.

Playing career

McCambridge was born in

Thompson, Manitoba Thompson (population 13,678) is the largest city in the Northern Region of Manitoba and is situated along the Burntwood River, north of Winnipeg. Originally founded in 1956 as a mining town, it now primarily serves as the "Hub of the North", ...

, but grew up in Selkirk. He joined the

Selkirk Steelers The Selkirk Steelers are a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Selkirk, Manitoba, Canada. They are members of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League, a part of the Canadian Junior Hockey League and Hockey Canada. History Junior "A" hockey in Selkirk ...

of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League as a 16-year-old, playing one season before moving on to the Swift Current Broncos of the

Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a major junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior h ...

, where he spent most of his

major junior Junior hockey is a level of competitive ice hockey generally for players between 16 and 21 years of age. Junior hockey leagues in the United States and Canada are considered amateur (with some exceptions) and operate within regions of each cou ...

career. During his final season of junior hockey, McCambridge was traded to the

Kamloops Blazers The Kamloops Blazers are a junior ice hockey team in the Western Hockey League (WHL). The team plays in the B.C. Division of the Western Conference, is based out of Kamloops, British Columbia, and play home games at Sandman Centre. The Blazers o ...

, joining them on their 1995 Memorial Cup championship run. McCambridge was drafted in the eighth round, 201st overall by the

Calgary Flames The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary. The Flames compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference, and ...

in the 1994 NHL Entry Draft. After junior, he spent three seasons with the Saint John Flames, Calgary's AHL affiliate, from 1995 to 1998. He later went on to play for several teams in both the American and the International Hockey Leagues, including the

Las Vegas Thunder The Las Vegas Thunder were a professional ice hockey team competing in the International Hockey League. The team's home rink was at the Thomas & Mack Center. They began play in the 1993–1994 season, folding on April 18, 1999. The demise of the ...

, Providence Bruins,

Long Beach Ice Dogs The Long Beach Ice Dogs were an American professional ice hockey team based in Long Beach, California at the Long Beach Sports Arena. They played until the end of the 2006–07 ECHL season. History The Ice Dogs trace their origins to the San Di ...

, and Cleveland Barons. Known for his tough, bruising style of play, McCambridge recorded 42 points and 1333 penalty minutes in 461 regular season games, AHL and IHL combined. He also played in 40 playoff games. In 2003, McCambridge signed as a player-coach with the Alaska Aces of the

ECHL The ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) is a mid-level professional ice hockey league based in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, with teams scattered across the United States and Canada. It is a tier below the American Hockey League (AHL). The ...

. He spent three seasons with the Aces, as a captain wearing the number 2, and was a part of their 2006 Kelly Cup championship team. McCambridge retired as a player following the Aces' championship season.

Coaching career

After retiring a player, McCambridge became a full-time assistant coach for Aces in 2006 and was promoted to head coach a year later. The Aces enjoyed two successful seasons under McCambridge's guidance and advanced to the finals in 2008-2009. In 2009, McCambridge joined the

as an assistant coach and later moved with the team to St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador in 2011. The

Winnipeg Jets The Winnipeg Jets are a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and is owned by True North Sports & Entertainment, p ...

, the parent club of the St. John's IceCaps, subsequently selected McCambridge to replace Claude Noël as head coach. McCambridge led the IceCaps to a division title in 2011–12 and a berth in the 2014 Calder Cup finals, which they lost to the Texas Stars in five games. McCambridge was retained as head coach when the franchise relocated back to Winnipeg as the Moose in 2015. After one season back in Manitoba, McCambridge's contract was not renewed by the Jets' organization. He was hired as an assistant coach by the Hartford Wolf Pack in August 2016. On June 12, 2017, McCambridge was named Wolf Pack head coach for the 2017–18 AHL season. He was fired after two seasons. McCambridge was hired as an Associate Coach by the

Vancouver Giants The Vancouver Giants are a major junior ice hockey team playing in the Western Hockey League (WHL). Inaugurated in 2001–02, the Giants have won one President's Cup (now known as the Ed Chynoweth Cup) in 2006 and one Memorial Cup in 2007 in t ...

of the WHL in 2020 and served in that capacity for two seasons. He has been hired by the

Bakersfield Condors The Bakersfield Condors are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL) based in Bakersfield, California. The team is owned by and affiliated with the National Hockey League's Edmonton Oilers. The Condors play their home ...

of the American Hockey League as an Assistant Coach.

Career statistics

Coaching record

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McCambridge, Keith 1974 births Living people Alaska Aces (ECHL) players Calgary Flames draft picks Canadian ice hockey defencemen Cleveland Barons (2001–2006) players ECHL coaches Houston Aeros (1994–2013) players Ice hockey people from Manitoba Kamloops Blazers players Las Vegas Thunder players Long Beach Ice Dogs (IHL) players Manitoba Moose (IHL) players Manitoba Moose coaches People from Thompson, Manitoba Providence Bruins players Saint John Flames players St. John's IceCaps coaches Selkirk Steelers players Swift Current Broncos players Canadian ice hockey coaches