Coach Hartley behind bench with Latvian national team
RIGA, Latvia — Bob Hartley has been named head coach of the Latvian men’s hockey team.
He was most recently the head coach of the NHL’s Calgary Flames, who fired Hartley on May 3 and subsequently replaced him with Glen Gulutzan.
Hartley, 56, will be the second NHL coach to stand behind Latvia’s bench after Ted Nolan from 2011-14.
Hartley’s contract is for one year with an option for a second, the Latvian Ice Hockey Federation said on its website.
The Hawkesbury, Ont., native coached the Colorado Avalanche to a Stanley Cup in 2001 and also coached the Atlanta Thrashers from 2003-07.
He won the Jack Adams Award as the NHL’s coach of the year in 2015 after coaching the Flames to a 45-30-7 record and into the second round of the playoffs.
But Calgary backslid 20 points in 2015-16 and Hartley was sacked.
The Latvian men are currently ranked No. 12 in the world by the International Ice Hockey Federation.
Latvia fell a win short of getting into the 2018 Winter Olympics when they lost to Germany in a qualification tournament final in September.
“It will be my first experience working with a national team and I’m grateful to the Latvian Hockey Federation for giving me the opportunity and confidence,” Hartley said in a statement.
Hartley will be scouting the world junior hockey championship in Toronto and Montreal starting Dec. 26, the Latvian federation said.