Quad City's Brian Curran named UHL Coach of the Year
May 2, 2006 - International Hockey League 2 (IHL 2) News Release
LAKE ST. LOUIS, MO--- The United Hockey League (UHL) announced Tuesday that Quad City Mallards head coach Brian Curran has been named the 2005-06 UHL Coach of the Year as selected by league head coaches and general managers.
In his first season behind the Quad City bench, Curran guided the Mallards to a 41-27-8 record during the regular season (.592 winning percentage) and a berth in the 2006 Colonial Cup Playoffs. The team ranked second in home penalty killing (87.9%) and tied for fourth in overall penalty killing (84.4%). Quad City tied for the third best goals allowed per game average (2.80) in the league. The Mallards were the least penalized team in the UHL as they tallied a league low 1,452 penalty minutes (19.11 per game), which also set a new team record for fewest penalty minutes in a season.
The Mallards returned just one player who saw significant action during the 2004-05 season for a team that won 39 games and qualified for the playoffs. Quad City's 2005-06 opening day roster consisted of just three players who had scored 20 or more goals in a season. The roster also had five rookies, two of which had never played in a professional game.
The 42-year-old native of Toronto, Ontario served as a head coach for five seasons prior to becoming the Mallards head coach at the start of the 2005-06 campaign. He has guided his teams to a winning record in each season and has earned coach of the year honors in the WPHL (1999-2000) and the ACHL (2002-03).
As a player, Curran was a defenseman for 15 professional seasons, including 381 games in the National Hockey League (NHL). He played for five different NHL teams scoring 40 points (7g, 33a) and collecting 1,461 penalty minutes. He also spent time in the AHL, IHL, and WPHL as a physical defenseman that racked up a total of 3,674 penalty minutes during his career.
PREVIOUS RECIPIENTS OF UHL COACH OF THE YEAR
2004-05 Mark Reeds, Kalamazoo
2003-04 Mark Reeds, Kalamazoo
2002-03 Greg Puhalski, Fort Wayne
2001-02 Mark Reeds, Missouri
2000-01 Terry Ruskowski, Knoxville
1999-00 Brad Jones, B.C.
1998-99 Rich Kromm, Muskegon
1997-98 Robert Dirk, Winston-Salem
1996-97 Robbie Nichols, Flint
1995-96 Mark Johnson, Madison
1994-95 Steve Ludzik, Muskegon
1993-94 Tom Barrett, Chatham
1992-93 Bill McDonald, Thunder Bay
1991-92 Peter Horachek, St. Thomas
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