John Fletcher is an American former ice hockey

goaltender In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as the goalie) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays in or near t ...

and coach who was an All-American for Clarkson.

Career

Fletcher was an instant hit for Clarkson, taking over the starting role as a freshman. He recorded 4 shutouts and was named ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Year. The team in front of him was average at best and finished in the middle of the conference, losing in the first round of the ECAC Tournament, but that didn't stop Fletcher from being drafted by the

Vancouver Canucks The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference, and play their home games at Rogers Arena. Bruce B ...

after the season. Fletcher was just as good the following year and was named an All-American. He backstopped the Golden Knights to an upset win over top-seeded

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

in the conference semifinals and was named as the top goalie of the tournament. After new head coach Mark Morris arrived in 1988, Fletcher saw his numbers worsen and his time in goal was reduced. Despite this, Clarkson finished 4th in the conference, their best result to date with Fletcher. Unfortunately, the team couldn't use home ice to its advantage and lost in the first round. Fletcher rebounded as a senior and won 20 games, getting the Golden Knights into the NCAA Tournament for the first time in six years. Clarkson was easily dispatched by

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

and Fletcher's college career came to a close. After graduating, Fletcher played two seasons of professional hockey but he found little success. He played exclusively at the

ECHL The ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) is a mid-level professional ice hockey league based in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, with teams scattered across the United States and Canada. It is a tier below the American Hockey League (AHL). The E ...

level and ended up with 5 different teams in that span. He finally began to produce good numbers in his last stop with the

Johnstown Chiefs The Johnstown Chiefs were a minor league ice hockey team located in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, that played in the ECHL. The team was founded in 1987 in the All-American Hockey League, and moved to the East Coast Hockey League (now "ECHL") when that ...

, but it wasn't enough to keep him in the game and he retired in 1992. Fletcher tried his hand at coaching next, serving as an assistant at several colleges over an 8-year span. In his final stop with Nebraska–Omaha, Fletcher also worked as an

HVAC Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) is the use of various technologies to control the temperature, humidity, and purity of the air in an enclosed space. Its goal is to provide thermal comfort and acceptable indoor air quality. HV ...

Comfort Advisor. He retired from coaching in 2002 and became a

sales manager Sales management is a business discipline which is focused on the practical application of sales techniques and the management of a firm's sales operations. It is an important business function as net sales through the sale of products and ser ...

, working for several companies over the next 15 years. In 2018, Fletcher became a sales director for EyeGuide, a position he holds as of 2021.

Statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fletcher, John 1967 births Living people AHCA Division I men's ice hockey All-Americans American men's ice hockey goaltenders Ice hockey coaches from Massachusetts Sportspeople from Newton, Massachusetts Clarkson Golden Knights men's ice hockey players Winston-Salem Thunderbirds players Cincinnati Cyclones players Nashville Knights players Knoxville Cherokees players Johnstown Chiefs players Vancouver Canucks draft picks Ice hockey players from Massachusetts