Rangers Announce Coaching Staff Additions
David Oliver and Greg Brown named Assistant Coaches, join Lindy Ruff on David Quinn's coaching staff
Oliver, 47, joins the Rangers organization after spending the past 11 seasons with the Colorado Avalanche organization (2007-08 - 2017-18). Oliver most recently served as Colorado's Director of Player Development, a role which he held for the last four seasons (2014-15 - 2017-18) as well as for two seasons in 2009-10 and 2010-11. During his tenure, he also served in a variety of roles for the Avalanche organization, including General Manager of the Lake Erie Monsters, Colorado's American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, for three seasons (2007-08 - 2009-10), an Assistant Coach with Lake Erie for two seasons (2011-12 and 2012-13), and the Director of Hockey Operations with Lake Erie for four seasons (2010-11 - 2013-14). In his role as Colorado's Director of Player Development, he assisted in the progression of several of the Avalanche's top prospects, including current Rangers defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk, who was selected by Colorado in the first round of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft and made his NHL debut with Colorado during the 2010-11 season.
Oliver served as Lake Erie's General Manager when the team hired current Rangers Head Coach David Quinn to be the Monsters' Head Coach prior to the 2009-10 season, and Oliver also served as an Assistant Coach on Quinn's staff in Lake Erie during the 2011-12 season. In his most recent role with the Avalanche as Director of Player Development, Oliver assisted in overseeing the development of all the franchise's prospects in the professional, junior, and college ranks in both North America and Europe.
Prior to beginning his tenure in an executive role, the Sechelt, British Columbia native played 13 seasons of professional hockey, including parts of nine seasons in the NHL (1994-95 - 1996-97; 1998-99 - 2000-01; 2002-03 - 2005-06). Oliver skated in 233 career NHL games with the Edmonton Oilers, New York Rangers, Ottawa Senators, Phoenix Coyotes, and Dallas Stars, registering 49 goals and 49 assists for 98 points, along with 84 penalty minutes. He played in 14 regular season games and three playoff contests with the Rangers during the 1996-97 season, and he tallied three points (two goals, one assist) in his 14 regular season games as a member of the Blueshirts. Oliver established career-highs in games played (80), goals (20), assists (19), and points (39) with Edmonton in 1995-96, and he led the Oilers in goals during his rookie season in 1994-95 with 16. He was selected by Edmonton in the seventh round, 144th overall, of the 1991 NHL Entry Draft.
Oliver also played four seasons of collegiate hockey with the University of Michigan (1990-91 - 1993-94) prior to beginning his professional career. In his final season at the school in 1993-94, he was a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award as the top player in collegiate hockey, and he was also named the CCHA Player of the Year. Oliver won the Turner Cup as International Hockey League (IHL) Champions with the Houston Aeros in 1998-99, as he registered 16 points (10 goals, six assists) in 19 playoff games.
Brown, 50, joins the Rangers organization after spending the past 14 seasons as a member of the coaching staff at Boston College (2004-05 - 2017-18), including the last six seasons as the team's Associate Head Coach (2012-13 - 2017-18). In his role at Boston College, Brown was responsible for overseeing the team's defensemen, and he also worked with the team's special teams units. During his tenure at the school, Boston College won the NCAA National Championship three times (2007-08, 2009-10, and 2011-12). Brown coached several current and former Rangers during his tenure at Boston College, including players such as Chris Kreider and Kevin Hayes. In addition, he assisted in the development of several defensemen who currently play in the NHL, including Brian Dumoulin, Noah Hanifin, Mike Matheson, Ian McCoshen, and Steven Santini. During the 2017-18 season, Boston College ranked fourth in Hockey East in goals against per game (2.68) and led Hockey East in shorthanded goals (seven).
In addition to his coaching experience with Boston College, Brown has served as an Assistant Coach with Team USA in several international tournaments. He served as an Assistant Coach with the United States at the IIHF World Junior Championship three times (2014, 2017, 2018), helping Team USA earn a gold medal in 2017 and a bronze medal in 2018. Brown coached current Rangers defenseman Brady Skjei during the 2014 IIHF World Junior Championship, and he also coached defenseman Ryan Lindgren, a Rangers prospect, at the IIHF World Junior Championship in both 2017 and 2018.
Prior to beginning his coaching career, Brown completed a distinguished playing career that spanned nearly two decades at the professional, collegiate, and international levels. He played three seasons of collegiate hockey at Boston College (1986-87, 1988-89, and 1989-90), registering 120 points (24 goals, 96 assists) in 119 career games. Brown received numerous accolades over the course of his collegiate career. In both 1988-89 and 1989-90, Brown was named the Hockey East Player of the Year, was selected to the NCAA (East) First All-American Team, and was selected as a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award as the top player in collegiate hockey. During the 1987-88 season, Brown played with the United States Men's National Team prior to the 1988 Winter Olympics, and he was teammates with Rangers legends Brian Leetch and Mike Richter at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Alberta. Brown was also teammates with Leetch and Richter, as well as Rangers Head Coach David Quinn, at the 1986 IIHF World Junior Championship, where Team USA earned its first medal in the tournament's history (bronze). In addition, Brown and Leetch played together for one season at Boston College (1986-87) and represented the United States at the 1987 IIHF World Junior Championship. Brown also represented the United States at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France.
Following his collegiate career, Brown played 13 seasons of professional hockey, including parts of four seasons in the NHL (1990-91; 1992-93 - 1994-95). Brown, who was selected by Buffalo in the second round, 26th overall, of the 1986 NHL Entry Draft, skated in 94 career NHL games with Buffalo, Pittsburgh, and Winnipeg, and he registered 18 points (four goals, 14 assists) and 86 penalty minutes. He also played professional hockey in Sweden, Switzerland, Austria, and Germany during his career.
Ruff, 58, enters his second season as an Assistant Coach with the Rangers. He joined the Blueshirts organization on July 10, 2017 after serving as a Head Coach in the NHL for the previous 19 seasons (1997-98 - 2016-17). Ruff has posted a 736-554-78-125 record (.561 points percentage) in 1,493 career regular season games as an NHL head coach. He ranks sixth in NHL history in games coached and wins, trailing only Scotty Bowman, Joel Quenneville, Al Arbour, Ken Hitchcock, and Barry Trotz in both categories.
