William Robert Peters (born January 13, 1965) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

coach and former college player. He has served as head coach of the

Carolina Hurricanes The Carolina Hurricanes (colloquially known as the Canes) are a professional ice hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference, ...

and

Calgary Flames The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary. The Flames compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference, and ...

of the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

(NHL),

Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg HC Avtomobilist (russian: Автомобилист Екатеринбург) are a professional ice hockey team based in Yekaterinburg, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia. They replaced Khimik Voskresensk in the Kontinental Hockey League in 2009. Histor ...

of the

Kontinental Hockey League The Kontinental Hockey League (KHL; russian: Континентальная хоккейная лига (КХЛ), Kontinental'naya khokkeynaya liga) is an international professional ice hockey league founded in 2008. It comprises member clubs ba ...

(KHL), as well as the

Canada men's national ice hockey team The Canada men's national ice hockey team (popularly known as Team Canada; french: Équipe Canada) is the ice hockey team representing Canada inter ...

Early life and career

Peters was born in

Three Hills Three Hills is a town in southern Alberta, Canada. It takes its name from the three somewhat-larger-than-normal hills to its north. History Three Hills post office dates from 1904. Three Hills was incorporated as a village in 1912, the year ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, where he spent the first ten years of his life living on a cattle and grain farm. He then moved to

Killam Killam is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Albert Clements Killam (1849–1908), Canadian lawyer * Amasa Emerson Killam (1834–1922), Canadian politician * Dorothy J. Killam (1900–1965), Canadian philanthropist * Eva Ki ...

, where he began playing both ice hockey and baseball. At age 15, Peters broke his knee when he was run over on his bicycle by a car, an injury that hindered his intention to play professionally. He played two seasons for the Augustana Vikings, and one for the

Red Deer College , mottoeng = To Greater Things Through Learning , established = 1964 , type = Public polytechnic institute , president = Stuart Cullum , city = Red Deer , state = Alberta , country = Canada , students = 7,500 , undergrad = , campus = Ur ...

Kings, during which he won the 1989

Alberta Colleges Athletics Conference The Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) is the governing body for collegiate sports in Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1964, as the Western Inter-College Conference, the ACAC is represented by eighteen schools, including one in Saskatchewan, t ...

championship under future mentor

Mike Babcock Mike may refer to: Animals * Mike (cat), cat and guardian of the British Museum * Mike the Headless Chicken, chicken that lived for 18 months after his head had been cut off * Mike (chimpanzee), a chimpanzee featured in several books and document ...

. After this, he began his managerial career coaching Killam's Junior B team at age 24 before moving to

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

for his wife's nursing job. Peters helped open

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , s ...

's first ice hockey rink, and held hockey schools every summer across the United States and Canada. He also played his only game as a professional in Texas as a last-minute replacement in 1996 for the

Central Hockey League The Central Hockey League (CHL) was a North American mid-level minor professional ice hockey league which operated from 1992 until 2014. It was founded by Ray Miron and Bill Levins and later sold to Global Entertainment Corporation, which opera ...

San Antonio Iguanas The San Antonio Iguanas were a minor league professional ice hockey team based in San Antonio, Texas. The first expansion team in the Central Hockey League, they were active for seven seasons from 1994–1997 and 1998–2002. Their home arena wa ...

Coaching career

Early career

Peters began his career during the 1989–90 season with his hometown

Killam Wheat Kings The Killam Wheat Kings are a junior "B" ice hockey team based in Killam, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the North Eastern Alberta Junior B Hockey League (NEAJBHL). They play their home games at Killam Agriplex. History In 2012, the Killam ...

as head coach. Starting in the 1996–97 season, he was named as an assistant coach for the

Spokane Chiefs The Spokane Chiefs are a major junior ice hockey team that plays in the Western Hockey League based out of Spokane, Washington. The team plays its home games at the Spokane Arena. Their uniforms are similar to those of the NHL's Montreal Canadi ...

of the

Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a major junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior h ...

(WHL). He served in that role through the end of the 2001–02 season. Peters then took his first head coaching job with the

University of Lethbridge , mottoeng = ''Let there be light'' , type = Public , established = , academic_affiliations = Universities Canada , endowment = $73 million (2019) , chancellor = Charles Weasel ...

and guided its Pronghorns ice hockey team for three seasons from 2002–03 through 2004–05.

Spokane Chiefs

In June 2005, Peters was named head coach of the WHL's Spokane Chiefs. His team posted a 25–39–8 record in his first season before taking a step forward in 2006–07 season when the team posted a 36–28–8 regular season record and qualified for the WHL playoffs for the first time since 2004. Spokane posted a franchise-best 50 regular season wins and 107 points in the 2007–08 season en route to a third-place finish in the WHL's Western Conference. The Chiefs went on to win 16 of 21 playoff games to claim the

Ed Chynoweth Cup The Ed Chynoweth Cup is an ice hockey club championship trophy awarded to the playoff champion of the Western Hockey League (WHL). Originally called the President's Cup when the league was founded in 1966, the trophy was renamed in 2007 to honou ...

as WHL champions. Peters then guided the Chiefs to four consecutive victories to claim the

Memorial Cup The Memorial Cup () is the national championship of the Canadian Hockey League, a consortium of three major junior ice hockey leagues operating in Canada and parts of the United States. It is a four-team round-robin tournament played between t ...

Canadian Hockey League The Canadian Hockey League (CHL; french: Ligue canadienne de hockey ‒ LCH) is an umbrella organization that represents the three Canada-based major junior ice hockey leagues. The CHL was founded in 1975 as the Canadian Major Junior Hockey L ...

champions. In his three seasons with the Chiefs, Peters posted a 111–82–23 regular season record.

Rockford IceHogs

After the Chiefs won the

2008 Memorial Cup The 2008 Memorial Cup was played in May 2008 in Kitchener, Ontario at the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium Complex, Memorial Auditorium. It was the 90th annual Memorial Cup competition and determined the junior ice hockey, major junior ice hockey cham ...

, Peters left Spokane and was named head coach of the

Rockford IceHogs The Rockford IceHogs are a professional ice hockey team based in Rockford, Illinois. They are members of the American Hockey League (AHL), having begun play in the League starting in the 2007–08 season. The team plays their home games at the ...

of the

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary Minor league#Ice hockey, developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 AHL se ...

(AHL) on August 1, 2008. The IceHogs posted consecutive 40-win seasons and qualified for the

Calder Cup The Calder Cup is the trophy awarded annually to the playoff champions of the American Hockey League. It was first presented in 1937 to the Syracuse Stars. The cup is made of sterling silver mounted on a base of Brazilian mahogany. In its curr ...

playoffs in each of Peters' first two years with the team, going 40–34–6 in 2008–09 and 44–30–6 in 2009–10. In his final season with Rockford, Peters led the second-youngest team in the AHL to a 38–33–9 record. Eight players who played for Rockford during Peters' tenure went on to win the

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, an ...

with the

Chicago Blackhawks The Chicago Blackhawks (spelled Black Hawks until 1986, and known colloquially as the Hawks) are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago. The Blackhawks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division i ...

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

Niklas Hjalmarsson Niklas Hjalmarsson (born 6 June 1987) is a Swedish retired professional ice hockey defenceman who last played for HV71 of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL). He previously also played for the Chicago Blackhawks and Arizona Coyotes of the National ...

Jordan Hendry Jordan Hendry (born February 23, 1984) is a Canadians, Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Chicago Blackhawks and Anaheim Ducks. He won the Stanley Cup with the Blackhawks in 2009 ...

, Antti Niemi,

Corey Crawford Corey Crawford (born December 31, 1984) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender. Nicknamed "Crow" by teammates and fans, he played his entire professional career with the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League (NHL), w ...

Kris Versteeg Kristopher Royce Versteeg (born May 13, 1986) is a Canadian entrepreneur and former professional ice hockey winger. During his career, he played for the Chicago Blackhawks, Toronto Maple Leafs, Philadelphia Flyers, Florida Panthers, Carolina Hur ...

Bryan Bickell Bryan Bickell (born March 9, 1986) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played for the Chicago Blackhawks and the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League (NHL). He won the Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2 ...

Nick Leddy Nicholas Michael Leddy (born March 20, 1991) is an American professional ice hockey defenseman for the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was drafted in the first round, 16th overall, by the Minnesota Wild in the 2009 NHL E ...

Brandon Bollig Brandon D. Bollig (born January 31, 1987) is an American former professional ice hockey player. An undrafted player, Bollig signed with the Chicago Blackhawks organization in 2010 after playing college hockey for St. Lawrence University. He made ...

and Ben Smith.

Detroit Red Wings

On July 8, 2011, the NHL's

Detroit Red Wings The Detroit Red Wings (colloquially referred to as the Wings) are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the East ...

named Peters as an assistant coach. Peters worked primarily with the team's defencemen and penalty-killing units.

Carolina Hurricanes

On June 19, 2014, the

announced that Peters had been hired to replace the vacant head coach position, previously held by

Kirk Muller Kirk Christopher Muller (born February 8, 1966) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey winger who played in the National Hockey League for 19 seasons from 1984–85 until 2002–03. He was also the head coach of the National Hockey League ...

. On April 20, 2018, Peters resigned from his position.

Calgary Flames

On April 23, 2018, Peters was hired as head coach of the

. In his first season, he led the Flames to their first division title in 13 years, and the second-most wins (50) and points (107) in franchise history, behind only the

-winning 1988–89 Calgary Flames. However, despite winning game one of their first round playoff series against the

Colorado Avalanche The Colorado Avalanche (colloquially known as the Avs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The Avalanche play thei ...

, they were upset and eliminated in five games.

Racism controversy and resignation

On November 25, 2019, an accusation of racism was made by former

player

Akim Aliu Akim Aliu (born April 24, 1989) is a Nigeria-born Canadian- Ukrainian former professional ice hockey player. He last played for HC Litvínov in the Czech Extraliga (ELH). Aliu was a second round selection of the Chicago Blackhawks, 56th overall, ...

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, alluding to racial profanities Peters directed towards him. Following this accusation, on November 26, a new Twitter accusation emerged from former

player Michal Jordán, alleging that Peters had kicked him and punched another unnamed player during a game. On November 27, Peters did not take his place behind the Flames' bench for a game against the

Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team was established in 1970, along w ...

, pending the outcome of an investigation by the Flames' management. Peters submitted his resignation on November 29, and Geoff Ward was named the interim head coach.

Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg

In April 2020 Peters was hired to be the coach of Russian hockey club

On November 30, 2021 he was relieved of his duties.

International coaching career

Peters served as head coach of the gold medal-winning

Canada men's national under-18 ice hockey team The Canadian men's national under 18 ice hockey team is part of a three-stage Program of Excellence beginning with the Under-17 regional teams and ending with the National Junior Team. The primary objectives of the Under-18 program are to identif ...

at the

2008 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament The 2008 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament was an under-18 ice hockey tournament held in Břeclav, Czech Republic and Piešťany, Slovakia from August 12–16, 2008. The two venues were Alcaplast Arena in Břeclav and Zimný Štadión in Piešťa ...

. That under-18 team included future NHL stars

Taylor Hall Taylor Hall (born November 14, 1991) is a Canadian professional ice hockey left winger for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was the first overall pick in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft selected by the Edmonton Oilers. He has ...

Ryan O'Reilly Ryan O'Reilly (born February 7, 1991) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre and captain of the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League (NHL). He has previously played for the Colorado Avalanche and Buffalo Sabres. O'Reilly was dra ...

Brayden Schenn Brayden Michael Schenn (; born August 22, 1991) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre and alternate captain for the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Los Angeles Kings fifth overall in the 2009 ...

Evander Kane Evander Frank Kane (born August 2, 1991) is a Canadian professional ice hockey left winger for the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He has previously played for the Atlanta Thrashers, Winnipeg Jets, Buffalo Sabres, and San J ...

and

Matt Duchene Matthew Duchene (; born 16 January 1991) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre for the Nashville Predators of the National Hockey League (NHL). He has previously played in the NHL for the Colorado Avalanche, Ottawa Senators, and Columbus ...

, among others. At the senior international level, Peters also served as head coach of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

's gold medal-winning team at the

2016 IIHF World Championship The 2016 IIHF World Championship was the 80th such event hosted by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), being held from 6 to 22 May 2016 in Moscow and Saint Petersburg, Russia. Canada entered the tournament as the defending 2015 cha ...

, and he was an assistant coach for Canada's championship teams at the

2015 IIHF World Championship The 2015 IIHF World Championship was the 79th event hosted by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), held from 1–17 May 2015 in Prague and Ostrava, Czech Republic. It broke the historical attendance record of IIHF World Championships ...

and

2016 World Cup of Hockey The 2016 World Cup of Hockey (abbreviated WCH2016) was an international ice hockey tournament. It was the third installment of the National Hockey League (NHL)-sanctioned competition, 12 years after the second World Cup of Hockey in 2004. It was ...

. On April 9, 2018,

Hockey Canada Hockey Canada (which merged with the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association in 1994) is the national governing body of ice hockey and ice sledge hockey in Canada. It is a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation and controls the majority ...

announced that Peters would serve as Canada's head coach at the

2018 IIHF World Championship The 2018 IIHF World Championship was an international ice hockey tournament hosted by the Danish cities of Copenhagen and Herning, held from 4–20 May 2018. The IIHF announced the winning bid on 23 May 2014 in Minsk, Belarus. South Korea made i ...

Head coaching record

References

External links

*
Bill Peters' official Detroit Red Wings bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Peters, Bill 1965 births Living people Canada men's national ice hockey team coaches Canadian ice hockey coaches Canadian ice hockey players Calgary Flames coaches Carolina Hurricanes coaches Detroit Red Wings coaches People from Kneehill County San Antonio Iguanas players Spokane Chiefs coaches University of Texas at San Antonio alumni Ice hockey people from Alberta