Danton Cole
Danton E. Cole ( born January 10, 1967 in Pontiac, Michigan ) is a retired American professional ice hockey player and current coach, who in his active years from 1984 to 2000 among others for the Winnipeg Jets, Tampa Bay Lightning, New Jersey Devils, New York has played Islanders and Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League, as well as the Krefeld penguins in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga. Since 2010 he has been head coach of the team of the U.S. National Team Development Program from the United States Hockey League.
Career
Danton Cole began his career as a hockey player with the Aurora Tigers, where he was active in the 1984/85 season in the Ontario Junior Hockey League. He was then selected in the NHL Entry Draft in 1985 in the sixth round as a total 123 players from the Winnipeg Jets. First, however, the winger visited four years the Michigan State University and played for their hockey team in the National Collegiate Athletic Association. With his University team he won during this period in 1986 initially the championship of the NCAA, as well as 1987 and 1989 respectively the championship of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association.
From 1989 to 1992 Cole played for the Winnipeg Jets of the National Hockey League, came in his rookie year, but almost exclusively on the Moncton Hawks of the American Hockey League action. Then he was two and a half years with the Tampa Bay Lightning under contract before he delivered in the 1994/95 season, shortly before the end of the Trade Deadline along with Shawn Chambers in exchange for Alexander Semak and Ben Hankinson to the New Jersey Devils, with whom he received the prestigious Stanley Cup won in the playoffs. During the following season the former international joined the club several times and played for the Indianapolis Ice and Utah Grizzlies of the International Hockey League, and the New York Islanders and Chicago Blackhawks in the NHL.
The 1996/97 season Cole began with the Krefeld Penguins in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga. After 28 games in which he scored seven goals and added twelve templates, however, he returned to North America and played up to end of his career after the 1999/2000 season at the age of 33 years for the Grand Rapids Griffins of the IHL. For the Griffins, he began his coaching career already in his last active season and was parallel assistant coach. In this function he worked for the Griffins in the 2000/ 01 season. With the Muskegon Fury of the United Hockey League, he won in the 2001/ 02 season, his first as head coach, the Colonial Cup. Then he returned to the Griffins, who were now changed to the American Hockey League. During the season 2004/ 05 he was succeeded there at his post of Greg Ireland. Cross season he was then just a year in charge of the Motor City Mechanics of the UHL.
During the season 2006/ 07 Cole oversaw the team of Bowling Green State University as an assistant coach. He then spent three years as head coach of the University of Alabama in Huntsville. Since 2010, the former NHL player directs the crew of the U.S. National Team Development Program from the United States Hockey League.
Internationally
For the U.S., Cole took part in the World Championships in 1990, 1991 and 1994. He scored nine goals in 25 international matches and gave six assists.