Rocky Thompson facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Rocky Thompson |
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Thompson at the 2014 Edmonton Oilers training camp
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| Born | August 8, 1977 Calgary, Alberta, Canada |
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| Height | 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) | ||
| Weight | 200 lb (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb) | ||
| Position | Right Wing, Defence | ||
| Shot | Right | ||
| Played for | Calgary Flames Florida Panthers |
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| NHL Draft | 72nd overall, 1995 Calgary Flames |
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| Playing career | 1996–2007 | ||
Rocky Lee Thompson (born August 8, 1977) is a Canadian former ice hockey player. He played as a right wing and also as a defenseman. Today, he is the head coach for the Bridgeport Islanders team in the American Hockey League. He used to be an assistant coach for the Philadelphia Flyers in the NHL.
Rocky was chosen by the Calgary Flames in the 1995 NHL Draft. He was the 72nd player picked overall. He was born in Calgary, Alberta, and grew up in Whitecourt, Alberta. Besides hockey, Rocky was also good at boxing when he was a teenager. He won a gold medal in the 1993 North American Indigenous Games. He also won championships in boxing tournaments in Alberta and Saskatchewan.
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Playing Hockey: Rocky's Career
Rocky Thompson played four seasons in the Western Hockey League (WHL). After that, he started his professional hockey career. He played for the Saint John Flames, which was a team linked to the Calgary Flames.
Playing in the NHL
Rocky played a few games in the NHL for the Calgary Flames during the 1997–98 and 1998–99 seasons. He later played a short time for the Florida Panthers in the 2000–01 and 2001–02 seasons. In total, he played 25 NHL games. He was known for getting a lot of penalty minutes, which means he spent time in the penalty box during games.
Playing in the AHL
Most of Rocky's professional hockey career was spent in the American Hockey League (AHL). He played for many different AHL teams. He often had many penalty minutes in these games too. For example, in the 2006–07 season, he played 55 games for the Peoria Rivermen. In that season, he had 127 penalty minutes.
Coaching Hockey: Rocky's New Role
After he stopped playing hockey, Rocky Thompson became a coach. He started as an assistant coach for the Edmonton Oil Kings in the Western Hockey League in 2007. Later, he became an assistant coach for the Oklahoma City Barons.
Coaching in the NHL
On July 16, 2014, Rocky was promoted to assistant coach for the Edmonton Oilers in the NHL.
Coaching the Windsor Spitfires
On July 3, 2015, Rocky Thompson became the head coach of the Windsor Spitfires. This team plays in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). In his first year, he helped the Spitfires improve a lot. They went from being last in their conference to finishing second in their division. In 2017, Rocky coached the Spitfires to win the 2017 Memorial Cup. This is a very important championship for junior hockey teams in Canada.
Coaching in the AHL and Beyond
On June 7, 2017, Thompson was hired as the head coach of the Chicago Wolves in the American Hockey League. He coached them for three seasons. Then, on September 22, 2020, he joined the San Jose Sharks as an associate coach. He did not continue with the team for the 2021–22 season due to a league requirement for people working closely with players.
In the summer of 2022, Rocky was hired by the Philadelphia Flyers as an assistant coach. He stayed in this role through the 2024–25 season.
On June 23, 2025, he was hired as the head coach of the Bridgeport Islanders. This team is the AHL team linked to the New York Islanders in the NHL.
