Joël Bouchard

Joël Bouchard (born January 23, 1974) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player who is the head coach and general manager of the Syracuse Crunch of the American Hockey League (AHL). He played in the National Hockey League (NHL) with eight teams for parts of 11 seasons between 1994 and 2008.

Playing career As a youth, Bouchard played in the 1988 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey team from Montreal.

Bouchard was drafted by the Calgary Flames in the sixth round of the 1992 NHL entry draft with the 129th overall pick. Collectively, he played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Flames, Nashville Predators, Dallas Stars, Phoenix Coyotes, New Jersey Devils, New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins, New York Islanders, as well as in the American Hockey League (AHL) for the Hamilton Bulldogs.

Coaching career After his playing career ended in 2008, Bouchard worked as an analyst for Réseau des sports (RDS). He also produced and hosted his own show called "l'Académie de Hockey McDonald." He became the head coach of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL)'s Blainville-Boisbriand Armada in 2014, leading the club to two league championship finals in 2017 and 2018.

Bouchard was hired in May 2018 as the head coach of the Laval Rocket, the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the Montreal Canadiens. In 2021, he left the Rocket at the end of his contract, posting a 83–67–24 record over three seasons.

On July 9, 2021, the Anaheim Ducks hired Bouchard to coach their AHL affiliate, the San Diego Gulls. After only a single season as head coach of the team, Bouchard was relieved from his duties.

On June 26, 2023, Bouchard was hired as head coach of the Syracuse Crunch, the AHL affiliate of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1990–91 Longueuil College-Francais QMJHL 53 3 19 22 34 8 1 0 1 11 1991–92 Verdun College-Francais QMJHL 70 9 37 46 55 19 1 7 8 20 1992–93 Verdun College-Francais QMJHL 60 10 49 59 126 4 0 2 2 4 1993–94 Verdun College-Francais QMJHL 60 15 55 70 62 4 1 0 1 6 1993–94 Saint John Flames AHL 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 1994–95 Saint John Flames AHL 77 6 25 31 63 5 1 0 1 4 1994–95 Calgary Flames NHL 2 0 0 0 0 — — — — — 1995–96 Saint John Flames AHL 74 8 25 33 104 16 1 4 5 10 1995–96 Calgary Flames NHL 4 0 0 0 4 — — — — — 1996–97 Calgary Flames NHL 76 4 5 9 49 — — — — — 1997–98 Saint John Flames AHL 3 2 1 3 6 — — — — — 1997–98 Calgary Flames NHL 44 5 7 12 57 — — — — — 1998–99 Nashville Predators NHL 64 4 11 15 60 — — — — — 1999–00 Nashville Predators NHL 52 1 4 5 23 — — — — — 1999–00 Dallas Stars NHL 2 0 0 0 2 — — — — — 2000–01 Grand Rapids Griffins IHL 19 3 9 12 8 — — — — — 2000–01 Phoenix Coyotes NHL 32 1 2 3 22 — — — — — 2001–02 Albany River Rats AHL 70 9 22 31 28 — — — — — 2001–02 New Jersey Devils NHL 1 0 1 1 0 — — — — — 2002–03 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 22 6 14 20 22 — — — — — 2002–03 New York Rangers NHL 27 5 7 12 14 — — — — — 2002–03 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 7 0 1 1 0 — — — — — 2003–04 New York Rangers NHL 28 1 7 8 10 — — — — — 2004–05 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 7 1 3 4 6 6 0 2 2 20 2005–06 Bridgeport Sound Tigers AHL 15 4 9 13 10 — — — — — 2005–06 New York Islanders NHL 25 1 8 9 23 — — — — — 2006–07 Bridgeport Sound Tigers AHL 4 0 3 3 0 — — — — — 2007–08 Hamilton Bulldogs AHL 20 1 6 7 18 — — — — — NHL totals 364 22 53 75 264 — — — — —

International Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM 1993 Canada WJC 7 0 0 0 0 1994 Canada WJC 7 0 1 1 10 1997 Canada WC 11 0 1 1 2 Junior totals 14 0 1 1 10 Senior totals 11 0 1 1 2

Coaching record QMJHL Team Year Regular Season Post Season G W L OTL Pts Finish ResultBLB2014–156841189911st in WestLost in first round (2–4 vs. GAT)BLB2015–1668263210624th in WestWon in first round (4–2 vs. VDR) Lost in quarter-finals (1–4 vs. ROU)BLB2016–176843196922nd in WestWon in first round (4–0 vs. DRU) Won in quarter-finals (4–3 vs. BAT) Won in semi-finals (4–1 vs. CHA) Lost in President's Cup final (0–4 vs. SJ)BLB2017–1868501171071st in WestWon in first round (4–0 vs. VDR) Won in quarter-finals (4–1 vs. MON) Won in semi-finals (4–3 vs. CHA) Lost in President's Cup final (2–4 vs. BAT)QMJHL totals2014–1827216080323522 division titles 33–26 (0.559)

AHL