Easton's Gordon named assistant for U.S. Olympic hockey team

Enterprise, The (Brockton, MA) - Tuesday, June 30, 2009

By Adam Riglian
ENTERPRISE STAFF WRITER

Scott Gordon is going international - again.

The Easton native and New York Islanders head coach has been named an assistant for the 2010 U.S. Olympic hockey team.

Gordon, a former goalie for Boston College whose netminding career included the NHL and Team USA netminder, will join Rangers head coach John Tortorella on the bench under U.S. skipper Ron Wilson at the 2010 Vancouver games.

'It's a much bigger stage, and the talent level on each team will be at its optimal best,' Gordon said.

Gordon has experience at the international level, having played on the 1992 U.S. Olympic team and served as an assistant on the U.S. squad at the 2009 International Ice Hockey Federation World Championships.

'As a player you are kind of on the edge of your seat if you are going to be on the team, nothing was written in stone until you got to the (Olympic) village,' Gordon said. 'As a coach you are worried about 20 players, not just one player.'

The key difference in coaching professional and international hockey is the style of play for Gordon, who got his education on the spot at the 2009 World Championships in Switzerland.

'It's a different style of play, there are things you can do within your system that allow you to be more successful than you can do in North America,' Gordon said.

He has no trepidation about working with the coach of the division-rival New York Rangers.

'I met John this year, and I'm looking forward to it,' Gordon said. 'You found out as you go through the NHL that most of the guys are great guys.'

Gordon's collegiate career lasted from 1983 to 1986, where he appeared in 103 games in net for the Eagles. He entered the pro ranks with the Fredericton Express of the AHL for the 1986-87 season. After a stints with the ECHL's Johnstown Chiefs and the AHL's Halifax Citadels, he broke into the NHL with the Quebec Nordiques, starting 10 games in the 1989-90 season and appearing in 13 in the 1990-91 season.

His career ended in 1994 after five games with the Atlanta Knights. As one door closes, another opens, and Gordon was working as an assistant with the Knights that same season. After a two year stint as head coach of the Roanoke Express, Gordon was hired as an assistant for the Providence Bruins, the AHL affiliate of the Boston Bruins.

The Providence Bruins were Gordon's home from 2000 to 2008. He took over as head coach in 2002 and led the Baby B's to a winning record and the postseason every year of his tenure.