Glen Sather
Hockey Builder - Inducted 1996
Glen Sather began his remarkable professional hockey career as a player for the Detroit Red Wings organization with the Memphis Wings in the 1964/65 season. A few seasons later, he made his National Hockey League debut with the Boston Bruins. He played 10 seasons for six teams that included Boston, Pittsburgh, New York Rangers, St. Louis, Montreal, and Minnesota. He compiled a career total of 80-113-293 in 658 games and added 1-5-6 in 72 playoff contests. He left the NHL and joined the World Hockey Association's Edmonton Oilers organization in 1976 as a player. In the spring of 1977, Glen Sather assumed the coaching duties and led his team to the first of its 15 straight WHA and NHL playoff appearances between 1977 and 1992. Glen Sather coached the Edmonton Oilers to five Stanley Cup Championships. His 21 victories in 27 playoff series placed him among the top coaches in hockey's history. He has continued to serve the organization as the Coach and/or General Manager and is considered to be one of the most respected administrators in professional hockey. In 1986, he was awarded the Jack Adams Trophy as the NHL's Coach of the Year. Glen Sather coached the Campbell Conference All-Star Team five times between 1984 and 1989. He coached Team Canada to the 1984 Canada Cup Championship and was the General Manager of Team Canada in 1994 when they won the World Hockey Championships.
After Induction
Glen Sather became the General Manager and President of the New York Rangers June 1, 2000. He held the position of General Manager until July 2015. He continued as the team’s president and in April 2019 announced he was stepping down from the position. He will remain as a senior adviser to NY Rangers owner, James Dolan.
In December 2015, the Edmonton Oilers honoured Glen Sather with a banner raising ceremony at Rexall Place during an Oilers and Rangers game. The preceding day a fundraising dinner was held for Glen and the City of Edmonton also declared a Glen Sather Day. A new arena at the new Rogers Centre will also be named in the Glen Sather arena. A million dollar donation by the Oilers owner will go toward helping under-privileged children play hockey and use the rink.
Glen was inducted into the Alberta Hockey Hall of Fame in July 2017.