Hardy Sauter (born February 25, 1971) is an American-born Canadian former professional ice hockey defenseman and coach.

Playing career

Sauter was born in

Dayton, Ohio Dayton () is the List of cities in Ohio, sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, Ohio, Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County, Ohio, Greene County. The 2020 United S ...

, but moved to

Maryfield, Saskatchewan Maryfield ( 2016 population: ) is a village in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan within the Rural Municipality of Maryfield No. 91 and Census Division No. 1. The village lies south of the intersection of Highway 48 and Highway 600 and is ...

at a young age. Sauter played

junior hockey Junior hockey is a level of competitive ice hockey generally for players between 16 and 21 years of age. Junior hockey leagues in the United States and Canada are considered amateur (with some exceptions) and operate within regions of each cou ...

with the

Brandon Wheat Kings The Brandon Wheat Kings are a Canadian junior ice hockey team based in Brandon, Manitoba. They are members of the Western Hockey League (WHL) since joining the league in the 1967–68 season. Previously, they played in the Manitoba Junior Hocke ...

and

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 Cana ...

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 ...

. He made his professional debut with 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 ...

Tallahassee Tiger Sharks The Tallahassee Tiger Sharks were a minor league professional ice hockey team that played in Tallahassee, Florida, from 1994 to 2001 as members of the East Coast Hockey League. The Tiger Sharks home rink was the Tallahassee-Leon County Civic Cente ...

during the 1995–96 season. Sauter also played for the Houston Aeros in the International Hockey League.Hardy Sauter hockey statistics and profile
hockeyDB.com. (accessed 15 June 2014) As a player, Sauter was best known as a member of the Oklahoma City Blazers in 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 oper ...

. Sauter played in 590 games with the Blazers between 1996 and 2005, retiring as the CHL's all-time scoring leader among defensemen and in the league's all-time top 10 overall in assists and points."Blazers' Hardy Sauter Retires"
,

. (accessed 15 June 2014) Sauter was elected to the CHL Hall of Fame in 2013."CHL To Honor Doug Lawrence and HOF Members at Tonight's Game"

Tulsa Oilers The Tulsa Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and play in the ECHL. The Oilers played their home games at the Tulsa Convention Center until 2008 when they moved into the new BOK Center. For many years, the Tuls ...

. (accessed 15 June 2014)

Coaching career

Immediately after retiring from the Blazers in 2005 Sauter accepted the head coaching position with the

Nipawin Hawks The Nipawin Hawks are a Canadian junior "A" team based in Nipawin, Saskatchewan. They are members of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL). They play their home games at the Centennial Arena, which has a seating capacity of 1,500. The t ...

of the

Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League The Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League is a Junior 'A' ice hockey league operating in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan and one of nine member leagues of the Canadian Junior Hockey League. Open to North American-born players 20 years o ...

. In 2007 Sauter was hired as an assistant coach by the Spokane Chiefs and promoted to head coach the following season, but was fired in 2010.Frank, Jared
"Fired from Chiefs, Hardy Sauter Lands Job with Idaho Steelheads"
KHQ-TV, July 28, 2010. (accessed 15 June 2014) Later in 2010 Sauter became head coach of the ECHL

Idaho Steelheads The Idaho Steelheads are an American professional minor league ice hockey team based in Boise, Idaho, and a member of the ECHL. The Steelheads play in the Mountain Division of the ECHL's Western Conference since the 2016–17 season. In 1996, t ...

. Sauter compiled a 63-59-22 record in two seasons in Idaho, but failed to take the team past the second round in the ECHL playoffs. The Steelheads declined to renew his contract after the 2011–12 season."May 4, 2012 in Sports"
''

The Spokesman-Review ''The Spokesman-Review'' is a daily broadsheet newspaper based in Spokane, Washington, the city's sole remaining daily publication. It has the third-highest readership among daily newspapers in the state, with most of its readership base i ...

'', May 4, 2012. (accessed 15 June 2014)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sauter, Hardy 1971 births Living people Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Canadian ice hockey coaches Canadian ice hockey defencemen Denver Daredevils players ECHL coaches Houston Aeros (1994–2013) players Ice hockey people from Saskatchewan Oklahoma City Blazers (1992–2009) players Spokane Chiefs coaches Tallahassee Tiger Sharks players Sacramento River Rats players