Todd Watson (born June 18, 1967 in

Wyandotte, Michigan Wyandotte ( ) is a city in Wayne County, Michigan, Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 25,058 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Wyandotte is located in southeastern Michigan, approximately south of Detro ...

) is an American

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

coach who has held head coaching positions in both the

North American Hockey League The North American Hockey League (NAHL) is one of the top junior hockey leagues in the United States and is in its 50th season of operation in 2024–25. It is the only Tier II junior league sanctioned by USA Hockey, and acts as an alternati ...

(NAHL) and the

Ontario Hockey League The Ontario Hockey League (OHL; ) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League, alongside the Western Hockey League and the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. The league is for players ag ...

(OHL).

Biography

From 2000 to 2003, Watson served as head coach of the

Detroit Compuware Ambassadors The Detroit Compuware Ambassadors were an elite Midget Major ice hockey team playing in the Tier I Elite Hockey League. The Ambassadors previously had separate franchises that competed in the North American Hockey League and in the Ontario Hocke ...

, a NAHL team based at the Compuware Sports Arena in

Plymouth, Michigan Plymouth is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. A western suburb of Detroit, Plymouth is located roughly northwest of downtown Detroit, and northeast of Ann Arbor. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 9,370. ...

. He earned NAHL Coach of the Year honors in 2002 and was named Executive of the Year in 2003. Under his leadership, the team posted a 115–37–16 record and captured the

USA Hockey USA Hockey is a national ice hockey organization in the United States. It is recognized by the International Olympic Committee and the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee as the governing body for organized ice hockey in the United S ...

Junior A National Championship in 2002. In 2003, he joined the OHL's

Plymouth Whalers The Plymouth Whalers were a major junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League. They played out of Compuware Arena in Plymouth Township, Michigan, Plymouth, Michigan, United States, a suburb of Detroit until 2015 when they were relocated t ...

as an assistant coach, where he played a key role in the team's

J. Ross Robertson Cup The J. Ross Robertson Cup is a Canadian ice hockey trophy. It is awarded annually in junior ice hockey to the champion of the Ontario Hockey League playoffs. It was donated by John Ross Robertson to the Ontario Hockey Association in 1910, an ...

victory and

Memorial Cup The Memorial Cup () is the national championship of the Canadian Hockey League (CHL), a consortium of three Junior ice hockey, major junior ice hockey leagues operating in Canada and parts of the United States. It is a four-team round-robin tou ...

appearance in the 2006–07 season. In 2007, he took over as head coach of the

Saginaw Spirit The Saginaw Spirit are a Junior ice hockey#Major junior, major junior ice hockey team based in Saginaw, Michigan, Saginaw, Michigan. They are members of the West Division of the Western Conference of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), one of the ...

in the OHL. During the 2009 playoffs, Watson guided the team to its first-ever playoff series win by sweeping the

Guelph Storm The Guelph Storm are a major junior ice hockey team based in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. They have played in the OHL since the 1991–92 season. The team plays home games at the Sleeman Centre. History The franchise started as the Toronto Marl ...

in the conference quarterfinals. He was dismissed early in the 2011–12 season and succeeded by

Greg Gilbert Gregory Scott Gilbert (born January 22, 1962) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player. Gilbert played 15 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the New York Islanders, Chicago Blackhawks, New York Rangers, and St. ...

. Following his coaching stint with the Spirit, he went on to work as a scout for the NHL's

Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. The Stars compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. The Stars ...

. In 2019, Watson was named head coach of the

Odessa Jackalopes The Odessa Jackalopes are a Junior ice hockey#Tier II, Tier II junior ice hockey team playing in the North American Hockey League (NAHL). The team is based in Odessa, Texas and plays their home games at Ector County Coliseum. History The fra ...

, a team in the NAHL. Although he began the season behind the bench, he stepped down from his coaching duties before the season concluded. Despite his departure from the head coaching role, Watson stayed connected to the organization by continuing to contribute as a regional scout.

Coaching record

References

External links

Saginaw Spirit bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, Todd 1967 births Living people Plymouth Whalers coaches Saginaw Spirit coaches Sportspeople from Saginaw, Michigan Sportspeople from Wyandotte, Michigan