In an interesting move, the Carolina Hurricanes have named Mike Vellucci the new head coach of their AHL affiliate Charlotte Checkers, while he keeps his role as Assistant General Manager for the NHL club.The Checkers lost their head coach when Ulf Samuelsson was hired by the Chicago Blackhawks (actually just announced today), and Vellucci has ample experience in a coaching and development role. As the Hurricanes GM Ron Francis put it himself in a release:
Mike has more than 20 years of coaching experience, including more than 800 games as a head coach in the Ontario League. He is excited to get back behind the bench and we appreciate his willingness to take on this additional responsibility.
Vellucci was the coach and GM of the Plymouth Whalers of the OHL for parts of fourteen seasons before joining the Hurricanes in a managerial position in 2014, and he should have no trouble sliding behind the bench in the AHL with players he is familiar with. While the team says he will be keeping all his duties with the NHL front office, he was generally in charge of scouting and player development, roles which align nicely with the AHL coaching position. He can now implement the strategies himself while getting an even closer look at the minor league players of other organizations.
Charlotte had a relatively successful season, making it to the playoffs for first time in four seasons. They’d fall at the hands of the Chicago Wolves in the first round, but it was a nice step forward for a young franchise without much success in its short history. Vellucci will be tasked with taking a roster filled with young players and developing them into a Calder Cup contender, even as the NHL team snatches players away for their own playoff aspirations.