Moe Mantha, Jr.

Maurice William Mantha Jr. (born January 21, 1961) is an American former professional ice hockey defenseman and who played twelve seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Winnipeg Jets, Pittsburgh Penguins, Edmonton Oilers, Minnesota North Stars, and Philadelphia Flyers.

Playing and coaching career Mantha was born while his father, Moe Mantha Sr., was playing for the Cleveland Barons of the American Hockey League (AHL). He was subsequently raised in Canada, when his father retired from hockey and returned to his hometown of Sturgeon Falls, Ontario. Moe Mantha Jr. has represented the United States in international hockey; he was a member of the U.S. team in the 1981, 1985, and 1991 Ice Hockey World Championships as well as the 1992 Winter Olympics.

Mantha first played for the Toronto Marlboros of the Ontario Hockey Association in 1978, and was drafted by the NHL's Winnipeg Jets in 1980. He played for the Jets and their minor league farm teams until 1984, when he was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins. He was then sent to the Edmonton Oilers in 1988; the Oilers traded him to the Minnesota North Stars later that same season. He later played for the Philadelphia Flyers and another stint with the Jets.

1992–93 was Mantha's final season as a player, for the AHL's Hershey Bears; he has since coached teams in the AHL (Hershey and the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks) and the ECHL's Columbus Chill. He coached the junior USA team out of Ann Arbor, Michigan, from 2000 to 2004. In 2005, Mantha was named as the head coach of the Detroit Gladiators of the new World Hockey Association, but the league never made it to the ice; instead, he served as head coach and general manager of the Windsor Spitfires of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) until he was terminated for gross misconduct during the Akim Aliu/Steve Downie hazing scandal that ultimately resulted in the Spitfires being fined $35,000 under Mantha's tenure. Mantha then served as the general manager and head coach for the French River Rapids of the NOJHL. On February 16, 2016, he was named interim head coach of the Saginaw Spirit of the OHL, making his second trip behind the Spirit bench, replacing the recently fired Greg Gilbert. He was not retained at the end of that season. In 2017, he was hired as the head coach and general manager of the Brookings Blizzard in the North American Hockey League. The Blizzard retained Mantha for one season after it relocated as the St. Cloud Blizzard in 2019 before he retired in 2020.

Personal life Mantha's nephew, Ryan Mantha, was drafted by the New York Rangers in the fourth round of the 2014 NHL entry draft, and was a prospect in the Edmonton Oilers organization before being sidelined by an eye injury and a heart defect.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1976–77 Streetsville Derbys CJHL 63 35 70 105 75 — — — — — 1978–79 Toronto Marlboros OMJHL 68 10 38 48 45 3 0 0 0 0 1979–80 Toronto Marlboros OMJHL 58 8 38 46 86 4 0 2 2 11 1980–81 Winnipeg Jets NHL 58 2 23 25 35 — — — — — 1981–82 Winnipeg Jets NHL 25 0 12 12 28 4 1 3 4 16 1981–82 Tulsa Oilers CHL 33 8 15 23 56 — — — — — 1982–83 Winnipeg Jets NHL 21 2 7 9 6 2 2 2 4 0 1982–83 Sherbrooke Jets AHL 13 1 4 5 13 — — — — — 1983–84 Winnipeg Jets NHL 72 16 38 54 67 3 1 0 1 0 1983–84 Sherbrooke Jets AHL 7 1 1 2 10 — — — — — 1984–85 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 71 11 40 51 54 — — — — — 1985–86 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 78 15 52 67 102 — — — — — 1986–87 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 62 9 31 40 44 — — — — — 1987–88 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 21 2 8 10 23 — — — — — 1987–88 Edmonton Oilers NHL 25 0 6 6 26 — — — — — 1987–88 Minnesota North Stars NHL 30 9 13 22 4 — — — — — 1988–89 Minnesota North Stars NHL 16 1 6 7 10 — — — — — 1988–89 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 30 3 8 11 33 1 0 0 0 0 1989–90 Winnipeg Jets NHL 73 2 26 28 28 7 1 5 6 2 1990–91 Winnipeg Jets NHL 57 9 15 24 33 — — — — — 1991–92 Winnipeg Jets NHL 12 0 4 4 6 — — — — — 1991–92 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 5 0 0 0 2 — — — — — 1992–93 Hershey Bears AHL 1 0 0 0 0 — — — — — NHL totals 656 81 289 370 501 17 5 10 15 18

International Year Team Event GP G A Pts PIM 1982 United States WC 7 1 1 2 6 1985 United States WC 10 2 1 3 10 1991 United States WC 9 0 0 0 2 1992 United States OG 8 1 1 2 4 Senior totals 34 4 3 7 22

Coaching statistics Year Team (League) Regular season Postseason G W L T OTL Pts Finish G W L Result 1994–95 Columbus Chill (ECHL) 68 31 32 0 5 67 4th East Division 3 0 3 Lost in round 1 1995–96 Columbus Chill (ECHL) 70 37 28 0 5 79 4th North Division 3 0 3 Lost in round 1 1996–97 Baltimore Bandits (AHL) 80 30 37 10 3 73 4th Mid-Atlantic Division 3 0 3 Lost in round 1 1997–98 Cincinnati Mighty Ducks (AHL) 80 23 37 13 7 66 4th Mid-Atlantic Division Did not qualify 1998–99 Cincinnati Mighty Ducks (AHL) 80 35 39 4 2 76 4th Mid-Atlantic Division 3 0 3 Lost in round 1 1999–00 Cincinnati Mighty Ducks (AHL) 80 30 37 9 4 73 5th Mid-Atlantic Division Did not qualify 2000–01 USNTDP Under-18 Team (NAHL) 56 18 35 0 3 39 5th East Division Did not qualify 2005–06 Windsor Spitfires (OHL) 68 32 29 0 7 71 3rd West Division 7 3 4 Lost in round 1 2010–11 Michigan Warriors (NAHL) 58 35 17 0 6 76 3rd North Division 11 7 4 Lost in Final 2011–12 Michigan Warriors (NAHL) 60 23 32 0 5 51 4th North Division 4 1 3 Lost in round 1 2012–13 Michigan Warriors (NAHL) 60 19 32 0 9 47 8th North Division Did not qualify 2013–14 Michigan Warriors (NAHL) 60 30 20 0 10 70 2nd North Division 9 6 3 Lost in round 3