Peter Laviolette Jr. (born December 7, 1964 in Norwood, Massachusetts, U.S.) is an American former National Hockey League defenceman and current <a title="Head coach" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Head_coach"> head coach. Since the 2003–04 NHL season he has been the head coach of the Hurricanes" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carolina_Hurricanes">Carolina Hurricanes. He led them to the Stanley Cup in the 2006 season.
As a player, Laviolette spent the majority of his 10 year career playing for various minor league teams. He played only twelve games in the NHL for the Rangers" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Rangers">New York Rangers in the 1988–89 season. Wanting to stay in hockey, Laviolette made the prudent choice to try his hand in coaching.
He began his coaching career as head coach of the ECHL Wheeling Nailers. In one season as coach, he led his team to a 37–24–9 record and took his team to the playoffs where they lost in the third round. He left Wheeling to take over the head coaching job for the Bruins" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Providence_Bruins">Providence Bruins. In 1998–99 he coached the team to a 56–15–4 regular-season record. In the playoffs Providence won the AHL Championship and hoisted the Calder Cup with a 15–4 playoff record. Laviolette was named AHL Coach of the Year for his efforts.
Laviolette's success in the AHL earned him a stint as an assistant coach for the Boston Bruins. Having grown up in the Boston suburb of Franklin, MA, Laviolette was disappointed when he did not get the head coaching job in Boston after that season so he left for the head coaching job on Long Island. After taking over the Islanders" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Islanders">New York Islanders, which had suffered seven years of post-season futility prior to his arrival, he led his team to the playoffs in both seasons he was there. His first season in New York resulted in a surprisingly consistent reason in which the Islanders earned 96 points (42–28–8–4 record), nearly winning the Atlantic division, before losing a close playoff series to Maple Leafs" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toronto_Maple_Leafs">Toronto. The Islanders sneaked into the playoffs the next season, despite just 35 victories, and then lost in 5 games to the Senators" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottawa_Senators">Ottawa Senators in the first round.
Laviolette came to the Carolina Hurricanes in the 2003–04 season. He took over following the firing of Paul Maurice. In his first season, he coached 52 games during a rebuilding year. Laviolette led the Hurricanes to an excellent regular season during his second year at the helm, winning the Southeast Division with 112 points (52–22–8 record). The Hurricanes won their first Stanley Cup championship in franchise history during the 2006 playoffs, after winning two very close seven-game playoff series. Laviolette's teams played excellent defense in come-back series wins over the Sabres" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buffalo_Sabres">Buffalo Sabres and Oilers" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmonton_Oilers">Edmonton Oilers. He was runner-up in the Coach of the Year Award, which was awarded to Lindy Ruff in the closest vote ever recorded for this award, 155–154.
After winning their first title, Laviolette's Hurricanes suffered through an injury-plagued 2006–07 season that saw the team finish with a disappointing 40–34–8 record. The next season, the team once again got off to a poor start, but held first place in a weak division for most of the season, despite having a sub-.500 record until February. The team then got hot and built what was seen as a solid lead. However, the Capitals" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_Capitals">Washington Capitals got red hot in the final weeks, Carolina lost several games down the stretch, and Laviolette's group missed the postseason.
Laviolette coached the U.S. Olympic Men's Hockey Team at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy.
