Phil Housley

He led the Sabres to a 31st-place finish in his first season and saw the Sabres attain a 10-game winning streak early in his second season before the team collapsed down the stretch.

Phillip Francis Housley (born March 9, 1964) is an American professional ice hockey coach and former player who is currently an associate coach for the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Playing as a defenseman, Housley was drafted by the Sabres in the first round of the 1982 NHL Entry Draft and had a long and illustrious career playing for the Sabres, Winnipeg Jets, St. Louis Blues, Calgary Flames, New Jersey Devils, Washington Capitals, Chicago Blackhawks, and Toronto Maple Leafs.

Housley never won the Stanley Cup, coming closest with the Capitals in 1998, where they were swept in the Stanley Cup Finals by the Detroit Red Wings.

On January 21, 2000, Housley played in his 1,257th NHL game, the most ever at the time by an American, breaking the record held by Craig Ludwig.

Housley went on to play in 1,495 NHL games.

From 2004 to 2013, Housley coached high school hockey at Stillwater Area High School in Stillwater, Minnesota, helping to rebuild the program to respectability.

He held the record for games played by an American-born player for nearly seven years, until it was broken, on November 24, 2006, by Chris Chelios.

He held the record for most points by an American-born NHL player until Mike Modano surpassed it on November 7, 2007.

On February 7, 2007, he was inducted into the Buffalo Sabres Hall of Fame, commemorated in a pre-game ceremony with former head coach Scotty Bowman on hand.

He had served as an assistant coach on Team USA's 2007 and 2011 appearances in the World Juniors.

As a player, Housley was inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2012, and the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2015.

Housley is the second leading scorer amongst American-born players, with 1,232 points (338–894).

From 2013 to 2017, Housley was an assistant coach for the Nashville Predators, working primarily with defensemen.

On January 5, 2013, Housley coached Team USA to the gold medal at the 2013 IIHF World U20 Championship in Ufa, Russia.

Housley was inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 2004, and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame on November 9, 2015.

Housley was the head coach of the NHL's Buffalo Sabres from 2017 until 2019.

At the time of retirement, Housley had played more NHL games without winning the Stanley Cup than any other player in NHL history until the retirement of Shane Doan in 2017, Jarome Iginla in 2018 and Patrick Marleau in 2022.

On June 15, 2017, it was announced that Housley was hired by the Buffalo Sabres as their new head coach.

He previously served as assistant coach for the Arizona Coyotes of the National Hockey League (NHL) from 2019 to 2022.

Housley was fired by the Sabres after the 2018–19 season on April 7, 2019.

On June 26, 2019, it was announced that Housley signed a multi-year contract as assistant coach for the Arizona Coyotes.

For the Coyotes, Housley served as defensive coordinator and power play coach.

With his contract set to expire, Housley and the Coyotes agreed to part ways on May 1, 2022.

He joined the New York Rangers as an associate coach in June 2023.

Housley grew up in South St. Paul, Minnesota.

He is married to his high school sweetheart, Karin Housley, a Minnesota state senator.

The Housleys have four grown children and reside in St. Marys Point, Minnesota.