The Cleveland Monsters have announced that veteran head coach Mike Eaves will be stepping away from his bench duties following the completion of the 2021-22 season tonight.
Eaves has been the head coach of the Monsters the past three seasons, taking over duties as the sixth coach in franchise history on June 18, 2019.
Prior to joining Cleveland, the 65-year-old Eaves spent 14 seasons at the University of Wisconsin from 2002 to 2016, leading his alma mater to seven NCAA tournament appearances and the 2006 national championship. He also coached three seasons at St. Olaf College from 2016 to 2019.
Professionally, Eaves served as head coach of the AHL’s Hershey Bears from 1990-93, and had stints as an assistant coach in the NHL with the Calgary Flames (1985-86), Philadelphia Flyers (1988-90, 93-94) and Pittsburgh Penguins (1997-2000).
“We’ve been fortunate to benefit from the wealth of experience Mike Eaves has brought to our organization as coach,” said Monsters general manager and Columbus Blue Jackets director of player personnel Chris Clark. “He’s had an incredible career in coaching and we’re appreciative for his contributions guiding our team the past three seasons.”
