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ECHL Atlanta Gladiators

Emmett Relieved of Head Coaching Duties

December 2, 2014 - ECHL (ECHL)
Atlanta Gladiators News Release


DULUTH, Ga. - The Gwinnett Gladiators announced that Rick Emmett was relieved of his head coaching duties on Tuesday. Emmett was the third head coach in Gladiators history, helming the team for 86 games since October 2013. He was also an assistant coach for the team from 2011 to 2013 and he played in 149 games as a Gladiators defenseman from 2003 to 2006.

"The Gladiators have relieved Rick Emmett of his duties as head coach effective immediately," said Gladiators President Steve Chapman. "Rick is a quality individual and he has done many positive things for this organization. He is a class act and has represented the Gladiators and himself well.

"Unfortunately, our results are not to the standards that we have set as an organization. Andy Brandt has been named as the interim head coach as we move forward."

Brandt has been the team's assistant coach since September 5th, 2013. He is no stranger to the organization as he holds the franchise record for most games played in a Gladiator uniform - 357 games across six seasons from 2006 until 2013. The former forward was also named the team's captain in his final professional season of 2012-13.

The Wausau, Wisconsin native was recognized for his work in the metro-Atlanta community with the ECHL's 2012-13 Community Service Award. He began the Gladiators yearly "Movember" campaign to help raise men's cancer awareness, and he has led an initiative to keep the team involved with Children's Hospital of Atlanta by organizing player visits each month during the season. He has served as the Director of Hockey at "The Cooler" Family Skating Center in Alpharetta since June 2012.

Brandt will serve in the interim role as the team begins its search for a permanent head coach.

The Gladiators are members of the ECHL, the nation's premier "AA" hockey league, and are affiliated with the Arizona Coyotes of the NHL. All home games are played at the 11,355-seat Arena at Gwinnett Center, located just off I-85 on Sugarloaf Parkway in Duluth - where parking is always free. As Atlanta's "One and Only" professional hockey team, the Gladiators have established an extraordinary winning tradition and unrivaled commitment to excellence, maintaining a distinctive reputation for affordable and family-friendly sports entertainment. The Gladiators are consistently ranked as one of the top "Things To Do" in the Atlanta area and across the North Georgia region.

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