The Montreal Canadiens announced today they have hired Nick Carrière as an assistant coach for their AHL affiliate, the St. John’s IceCaps.
The appointment rounds out the IceCaps coaching staff that includes head coach Sylvain Lefevbre and assistant Donald Dufresne.
Carrière completed his 10th year as head coach at Buffalo State in 2014-15, leading the Bengals to their fourth-consecutive trip to the SUNYAC semi-finals . The 35-year-old led his team to nine playoff berths in 10 years at the helm of the Bengals. In addition, he was named the SUNYAC Coach of the Year in 2005-06.
Carrière came to Buffalo State after three seasons as an assistant coach at Fredonia State (2002-05), where he worked extensively in the program’s recruiting efforts in New York, Ontario and Quebec. He also has more than 10 years of experience working with various hockey schools and camps, including the Buffalo Sabres Hockey School. He also served as an assistant coach with the gold medal-winning Western Team (USA) in the 2007 Empire State Games.
A native of Mississauga, Ontario, Carrière played minor hockey in Lachute and Ste. Agathe before suiting up for the Fort Erie Meteors at the junior B level, in Ontario. He then attended Niagara University, where he was a key contributor to the success of the Purple Eagles while earning a bachelor’s degree in commerce. Carrière was twice named the squad’s Most Improved Player and played professional hockey in both Rockford and Adirondack of the United Hockey League. He also took part in the training camp of the South Carolina Stingrays of the East Coast Hockey League.
