By: Alex Thomas, Hartford Wolf Pack
HARTFORD, CT – New York Rangers President and General Manager Chris Drury announced today that the club has named Paul Mara as an assistant coach on the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack staff. Mara will join interim head coach Steve Smith and assistant coach Jaime Tardif, effective immediately.
Mara, 44, initially joined the Rangers on August 25th, 2023, as a Player Development Assistant. He will continue to serve in that role while working on the Wolf Pack coaching staff.
Before joining the Rangers, Mara spent five seasons as the head coach of the NWHL & PHF’s Boston Pride. He led the Pride to two Isobel Cup Championships, winning the title in 2021 and 2022. He also led the club to a regular season championship in 2019-20.
Mara served as an assistant coach for the U.S. Women’s National Team at the 2018 Winter Olympics, where they won the gold medal. It was Team USA’s second gold medal (1998) in women’s ice hockey at the Winter Olympics.
Prior to coaching, Mara played in 734 career NHL games throughout 12 seasons with the Montréal Canadiens, Anaheim Ducks, New York Rangers, Boston Bruins, Phoenix Coyotes, and Tampa Bay Lightning. He scored 253 career points (64 g, 189 a).
In addition, Mara dressed in 36 career AHL games with the Houston Aeros during the 2012-13 season, tallying eleven points (1 g, 10 a).
He was selected in the first round, 7th overall, of the 1997 NHL Entry Draft by the Lightning.
The Wolf Pack wraps up a four-game homestand on Wednesday night when they welcome the Cleveland Monsters to town for the first of four meetings this season! The puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m., and tickets are available at hartfordwolfpack.com.
About OVG360: OVG360, a division of Oak View Group, is a full-service venue management and hospitality company that helps client partners reimagine the sports, live entertainment, and convention industries for the betterment of the venue, employees, artists, athletes, and surrounding communities. With a portfolio of more than 200 client partners spanning arenas, stadiums, convention centers, performing arts centers, cultural institutions, and state fairs around the globe, OVG360 provides a set of services, resources, and expertise designed to elevate every aspect of business that matters to venue operators. Service-oriented and driven by social responsibility, OVG360 helps facilities drive value through excellence and innovation in food services, booking and content development, sustainable operations, public health and public safety, and more.
ABOUT THE HARTFORD WOLF PACK: The Hartford Wolf Pack has been a premier franchise in the American Hockey League since the team’s inception in 1997. The Wolf Pack is the top player-development affiliate of the NHL’s New York Rangers and plays at the XL Center. The Wolf Pack has been home to some of the Rangers’ newest faces, including Igor Shesterkin, Filip Chytil, and Ryan Lindgren. Follow the Wolf Pack on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok.
Leave a Reply