Joseph William Sacco (born February 4, 1969) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

former

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 ...

player and currently an assistant coach for the

Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team has been in existence since 1924, making t ...

. His younger brother

David Sacco David Anthony Sacco (born July 31, 1970) is an American former professional ice hockey player. Drafted 195th overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft, Sacco played 35 games in the National Hockey League between 1994 and 199 ...

also played in the NHL.

Career

Playing career

As a youth, Sacco played in the 1982

Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament The Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament (french: Tournoi international de hockey pee-wee de Québec) is an annual minor ice hockey event in Quebec City. The tournament was founded in 1960 to coincide with the Quebec Winter Carnival, ...

with the Boston Braves

minor ice hockey Minor hockey is an umbrella term for amateur ice hockey which is played below the junior age level. Players are classified by age, with each age group playing in its own league. The rules, especially as it relates to body contact, vary from cla ...

team. Drafted in the

1987 NHL Entry Draft The 1987 NHL Entry Draft was the 25th NHL Entry Draft. It was held at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan, and was the first draft held in the United States. The National Hockey League (NHL) teams selected 252 players eligible for entry into pr ...

by the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...

, Sacco played for

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original campu ...

before joining the Leafs. Sacco also played for the

Mighty Ducks of Anaheim Mighty may refer to: * ''Mighty'' (The Planet Smashers album) * ''Mighty'' (Kristene DiMarco album) * ''The Mighty'' (1929 film), a 1929 American action film *''The Mighty'', a 1998 comedy-drama film * ''The Mighty'' (comics), a DC Comics title *Th ...

New York Islanders The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference ( ...

Washington Capitals The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL) ...

, and

Philadelphia Flyers The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home games in Wells ...

. In 738 NHL games, he had 94 goals and 119 assists.

International play

Played for

USA The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

in: *

1989 World Ice Hockey Championships The 1989 Ice Hockey World Championships took place in Sweden from 15 April – 1 May. The games were played in Södertälje and Stockholm, in the newly built arena Globen. Eight teams took part, and each team played each other once. The four be ...

* 1990 World Ice Hockey Championships * 1991 World Ice Hockey Championships *

1992 Winter Olympics ) , nations = 64 , athletes = 1,801 (1313 men, 488 women) , events = 57 in 6 sports (12 disciplines) , opening = 8 February 1992 , closing = 23 February 1992 , opened_by = President François Mitterrand , cauldron ...

* 1992 World Ice Hockey Championships * 1994 World Ice Hockey Championships * 1996 World Ice Hockey Championships * 2002 World Ice Hockey Championships

Coaching career

In the 2005–06 season, two years into retirement from playing, Sacco was hired as an assistant coach for the

Lowell Lock Monsters The Lowell Devils were a minor ice hockey team in the American Hockey League playing in Lowell, Massachusetts, at the Tsongas Center. As their name implied, they were the top minor league affiliate of the New Jersey Devils of the National Hockey L ...

, affiliate of 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 ...

. On May 7, 2007, after two years as an assistant, Sacco was named head coach of the

's new AHL franchise, the

Lake Erie Monsters The Cleveland Monsters are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL). The team began play in 2007 as the Lake Erie Monsters and since 2015 has served as the top affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hock ...

. Sacco then led the Monsters for the next two seasons and while recording somewhat unimpressive season's numbers with limited resources was credited with helping development of younger players to the NHL. On June 4, 2009, a day after Avalanche head coach

Tony Granato Anthony Lewis Granato (born July 25, 1964) is an American former professional ice hockey left winger and current head coach of the Wisconsin Badgers men's ice hockey team. He served as head coach of the United States men's national ice hockey tea ...

was fired, Sacco was promoted and later introduced as the new head coach of the Colorado Avalanche for the 2009–10 season, a job former Avs great

Patrick Roy Patrick Jacques Roy (; born October 5, 1965) is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey goaltender and executive, who serves as the head coach for the Quebec Remparts of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). In 2017, Roy was named o ...

turned down days prior. After being projected finishing 15th in the Western Conference by most hockey pundits, Sacco coached the Avalanche to the

2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs The 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs of the National Hockey League (NHL) began on April 14, 2010, after the 2009–10 NHL regular season. The Finals ended on June 9, 2010, with the Chicago Blackhawks defeating the Philadelphia Flyers in six games to ...

posting a record of 43–30–9 in his rookie year of coaching in the NHL. His team would end up being eliminated in the first round after six games by the

San Jose Sharks The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference, and are owned by San Jose Sports & Entertainm ...

. On April 28, 2010, Sacco was named a finalist for the

Jack Adams Award The Jack Adams Award is awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) coach "adjudged to have contributed the most to his team's success." The league's Coach of the Year award has been presented 47 times to 39 coaches. The winner is selecte ...

for NHL coach of the year alongside

Dave Tippett David G. Tippett (born August 25, 1961) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey coach and player. Tippett played in the NHL from 1983 to 1994 as a winger for the Hartford Whalers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Philadelphia Flyers and Washington Cap ...

of the

Phoenix Coyotes The Arizona Coyotes are a professional ice hockey team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Coyotes compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference and currently play at the Mull ...

and

Barry Trotz Barry Trotz (born July 15, 1962) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach who most recently was head coach of the New York Islanders of the National Hockey League (NHL). He is also the former head coach of the Nashville Predators and the Washi ...

of the

Nashville Predators The Nashville Predators (commonly referred to as the Preds) are a professional ice hockey team based in Nashville, Tennessee. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and ha ...

. Following the

2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

season, his fourth year at the helm, finishing last in the Western Conference and out of the playoffs for a third consecutive year, Sacco was relieved of his duties on April 28, 2013. It brought an end to his eight-year association with the Avalanche. On July 2, 2013, 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 ...

hired Sacco as an assistant coach. On July 24, 2014, the Boston Bruins hired Sacco as their assistant coach.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Coaching record

NHL

AHL

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sacco, Joe 1969 births Living people American expatriate ice hockey players in Canada American ice hockey coaches American men's ice hockey right wingers American people of Italian descent Boston Bruins coaches Boston University Terriers men's ice hockey players Buffalo Sabres coaches Colorado Avalanche coaches Ice hockey coaches from Massachusetts Ice hockey players at the 1992 Winter Olympics Mighty Ducks of Anaheim players New York Islanders players Newmarket Saints players Olympic ice hockey players of the United States Sportspeople from Medford, Massachusetts Philadelphia Flyers players Philadelphia Phantoms players St. John's Maple Leafs players Toronto Maple Leafs draft picks Toronto Maple Leafs players Washington Capitals players Ice hockey players from Massachusetts