Who is Kris Knoblauch? Meet Connor McDavid's former juniors and new Edmonton Oilers head coach

Kris Knoblauch is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player who was recently appointed as the head coach of the Edmonton Oilers in the NHL. Knoblauch brings an impressive coaching pedigree, boasting 13 seasons of experience before joining the Oilers.

His coaching journey includes two seasons as an assistant coach with the Philadelphia Flyers in the NHL and seven years as a head coach in the Canadian junior leagues.

During his tenure with the Kootenay Ice and Erie Otters, Knoblauch accumulated a stellar record of 298–130–16–13. Notably, he mentored and coached star players like Connor McDavid, Alex DeBrincat, Andre Burakovsky, Connor Brown, and many more.

Knoblauch, a native of Imperial, Saskatchewan, was a seventh-round choice of the New York Islanders in the 1997 NHL Entry Draft. While he never made it to the NHL, he made an impact throughout four seasons of junior hockey in the Western Hockey League (WHL) and five seasons with the Alberta Golden Bears.

Knoblauch's coaching journey began as an assistant with the Prince Albert Raiders and later the Kootenay Ice before assuming the head coaching role in 2010. Now at the helm of the Edmonton Oilers, Kris Knoblauch's wealth of experience and knack for developing talent position him as a key figure in the team's pursuit of success in the NHL.

The Edmonton Oilers have dismissed head coach Woodcroft and announced that Kris Knoblauch will take over as the new head coach

The Edmonton Oilers have announced the dismissal of head coach Jay Woodcroft and assistant coach Dave Manson following a disappointing 3-9-1 start to the season. Woodcroft's term as head coach ended in February 2022, after a year and a half.

Kris Knoblauch, the head coach of the Hartford Wolfpack, will be the new head coach, with Paul Coffey coming in as an assistant.

The team had success under Woodcroft in the latter part of the 2021–22 season, posting a 26-9-3 record and reaching the Western Conference Final. However, they were swept in the playoffs by the eventual Stanley Cup champions, the Colorado Avalanche.

In the subsequent full season, the Oilers earned 109 points, the fourth-highest in team history, but were eliminated in the second round by the Vegas Golden Knights, who eventually won the Stanley Cup.

Despite high hopes for the 2023–24 season, the Oilers struggled in their first seven games, losing six of them, including an 8-1 loss in Vancouver on opening night. The team is on a four-game losing run.