Latest news with #MichaelLeighton
Ottawa Citizen
08-07-2025
- Sport
- Ottawa Citizen
Red Wings give former Spitfire Leighton the best of both worlds
Article content It is the best of both worlds for former Windsor Spitfires player and coach Michael Leighton. Article content He wanted to remain in hockey, but after nearly two decades of pro hockey with stops in 19 different cities, the 44-year-old Leighton wasn't looking to be far away from his family and LaSalle home. Article content Article content He found that balance with the Detroit Red Wings hiring the American Hockey League hall-of-famer to be the club's new goaltending coach. Article content Article content 'I was just looking for the right job that fit myself and my family,' Leighton said. 'To move away and move away from my family would have been tough. I did pass up on a few jobs the last couple years that just weren't a fit.' Article content Article content A sixth-round pick by the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks in 1999, Leighton's hockey odyssey began in 2001 in the AHL with Rockford after three solid seasons with the Spitfires. He was named to the league's all-rookie team and got his first taste of the NHL the next season with Chicago. Article content But settling into a long-term stay never played out in Leighton's career. He played in more than 500 AHL games with 12 teams and his 50 career shutouts broke Johnny Bower's all-time record in the league. He also got into more than 100 NHL games with Chicago, Nashville, Philadelphia and Carolina, while also spending time with Buffalo, Columbus and Montreal, and helped Philadelphia to the Stanley Cup final in 2010. There was also that season playing in the KHL with Donbass. Article content Article content Through all the travels, he had hoped to one day get closer to home and join the Red Wings' organization. Article content 'I felt, near the end of my career, I was also a mentor for these (goalies) coming out of junior and felt I got jobs to also be a mentor,' Leighton said. 'I tried my last three or four years to maybe get with Grand Rapids (Detroit's AHL affiliate), but they always seemed to have good goaltenders.' Article content He joined Marc Savard's staff with the Spitfires in 2021-223 and helped the club to back-to-back Western Conference regular-season titles behind the underrated goaltending of Xavier Medina, Matt Onuska and Joey Costanzo. Article content But when the Spitfires let first-year head coach Jerrod Smith go after a slow start in 2023-24, Leighton stepped down along with assistant coach Andy Delmore.
Yahoo
07-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Red Wings Announce Michael Leighton Hired As New Goaltending Coach
The Detroit Red Wings had a vacancy to fill after deciding to part ways with goaltending coach Alex Westlund in late April. They've officially filled that position, announcing that former NHL veteran Michael Leighton has accepted the job as Detroit's new goaltending coach. He'll be overseeing Detroit's tandem of John Gibson, who was recently acquired from the Anaheim Ducks, and Cam Talbot, who is entering his second season in Detroit. Advertisement Leighton, who played 110 regular season NHL games, already has a connection to a pair of current Red Wings players. In 2010, he and James van Riemsdyk helped the Philadelphia Flyers advance to the Stanley Cup Final, where they would be defeated by Patrick Kane and the Chicago Blackhawks. Kane's wrist shot from a sharp angle slipped under the pads of Leighton shortly into overtime of the decisive Game 6, clinching the first Stanley Cup win for the Blackhawks in 49 years. van Riemsdyk was also on the ice for the Flyers at the time of the infamous Cup-winning goal. It was Philadelphia's first appearance in the Stanley Cup Final since they were swept by the Red Wings in 1997. Advertisement Leighton was originally selected by the Blackhawks in the 1999 NHL Draft after rising through the ranks of the Ontario Minor Hockey Association, the Western Ontario Hockey League, and the Ontario Hockey League. After playing two seasons with the AHL's Norfolk Admirals, Leighton would officially debut in the NHL for the Blackhawks in January of 2003 and recorded a shutout in his first start, a scoreless tie against the Phoenix Coyotes. Leighton then spent brief stints with the Buffalo Sabres, Anaheim Ducks, and Nashville Predators before he began what would be the first of a pair of tenures with the Flyers. While playing with the Carolina Hurricanes in 2009, the club signed former Red Wings goaltender Manny Legace after starter Cam Ward suffered a leg injury, and he was placed on waivers and subsequently claimed by the Flyers. Advertisement Leighton would eventually help lead the Flyers to the 2010 Stanley Cup Final, which included an improbable reverse sweep over the Boston Bruins in the Eastern Conference Semi Final. He recorded three shutouts in the Eastern Conference Final over the Montreal Canadiens, which tied an NHL record for most shutouts by a goaltender in a single postseason series. The bulk of the remainder of Leighton's professional playing career, which lasted until his retirement in 2019, was spent playing in the AHL. Overall, he was named to five All-Star Classic appearances during his time in the AHL , including in 2012, 2016, and 2017. His 50 shutouts are the most by any goaltender in AHL history, and he also holds the AHL record for most saves in a single game, stopping an astounding 98 shots as part of a five-overtime marathon contest while with the Albany River Rats against the Philadelphia Phantoms. Leighton amassed an NHL record of 37-43-14 with a 2.98 goals-against average, a .900 save percentage, and four shutouts. Advertisement He also racked up a 250-186-50 record in 507 AHL games, with a 2.38 goals-against average and a .916 save percentage.
