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Ross Yates
Syracuse Crunch — Head Coach
Ross Yates returns to the Crunch for his tenth season and fourth as head coach. He served as the team's assistant coach from 2000-2006.
Yates guided the Crunch to a 40-32-5-3 mark last season, missing the playoffs by just two points and finishing in fifth place in a very tough North Division. In 2007-08, Yates led Syracuse to a 46-26-2-6 record, good for 100 points, the second most in team history and a second place finish in the North Division. In his three seasons as head coach, he has compiled a 120-92-11-17 mark, good for a .566 winning percentage, the highest in team history.
Before joining the Crunch prior to the 2000-01 season, Yates spent more than a decade as a player and coach in Europe. Most recently he served as the head coach of Hamburg, a member of the German Bundesliga League. Yates has held four other head coaching positions in Europe in the 1990's, including stints in the German, Italian and Swiss Elite Leagues.
Yates, 50, began his playing career at Mount Allison University in Sackville, New Brunswick, where he was an All-Canadian selection in 1980. He signed a free agent contract with Hartford in 1981 and went on to spend four years with the Whalers' AHL affiliate in Binghamton, NY. His finest season came in 1982-83 when he tallied 41 goals and 84 assists for 125 points and was named the AHL Most Valuable Player and The Hockey News Minor League Player of the Year. He earned AHL All-Star honors the next year (1983-1984) and made his NHL debut with Hartford late in the season, collecting two points (1g, 1a) in seven games. He was selected to the Binghamton Hockey Hall of Fame during the 2002-03 season.
A native of Montreal, PQ, Yates signed with Manheim of the German Elite League in 1984. Over the next eight years, he suited up for four different teams in Germany, Switzerland and Italy. In 1986, he also made a brief North American stop in Rochester (AHL), playing 22 games, recording four goals and eight assists.
He is the fourth head coach in Crunch history (Jack McIlhargey, 1994 - 1999, Stan Smyl, 1999-00 and Gary Agnew 2000 - 2006).
Yates and his wife Laurie, have three children Jennifer (21), Patrick (18) and Trevor (14).
Trent Cull
Syracuse Crunch — Assistant Coach
Trent Cull returns to the Crunch for his fourth season in the role of assistant coach.
Over the past three seasons, he and head coach Ross Yates have guided the Crunch to a 120-92-11-17 record. In addition, Cull has helped Syracuse improve its penalty killing over the past two seasons, ranking fourth in the AHL in 2007-08 and eleventh in the 29-team league in 2008-09.
Trent finished his playing days as a member of the Syracuse Crunch between 2002-04, appearing in 98 games, tallying two goals, 15 assists and 261 penalty minutes. A native of Georgetown, Ontario, Cull, 36, appeared in 435 career AHL games with St. John's, Springfield, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Houston and Syracuse, registering 20 goals, 50 assists and 1,049 penalty minutes.
In addition, Cull spent parts of three seasons as a member of the Houston Aeros (IHL) from 1997-00, skating in 179 games, notching eight goals, 29 assists and 566 penalty minutes. He was a member of the Aeros club that won the Turner Cup in the 1999-00 season.
Originally signed as a free agent by Toronto on June 4, 1994, Cull's best professional season was in 2000-01 as a member of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins club that went to the Calder Cup Finals, when he netted 11 goals, 15 assists and 166 penalty minutes.
He is the sixth assistant coach in Crunch history (Curt Fraser 1994-95, Ted Sator 1996-97, Glenn Patrick 1997 - 99, Barry Smith 1999-00 and Ross Yates 2000 - 06).
Cull and his wife Marcia, have two children, Gabriel (5) and Wyatt (2).
Karl Goehring
Syracuse Crunch– Assistant Coach
Karl Goehring
Syracuse Crunch– Assistant Coach
Karl Goehring enters his first year as an assistant coach after finishing up an eight-year professional career in which he compiled a record of 139-125-35 with a 2.65 goals against average, .912 save percentage and 17 shutouts with AHL stops in Syracuse, San Antonio, Milwaukee, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Norfolk, and Manitoba and parts of one season each with Dayton (ECHL) and Jokerit Helsinki (Finland).
Goehring, 31, spent parts of five seasons with the Crunch from 2001-05 and 2007-08 and is the all-time franchise goaltending leader in games played (177), minutes (9,991), wins (78) and shutouts (11-tied). In addition, he holds the single-season records for lowest goals against average (2.12) and save percentage (.930), both set during the 2007-08 campaign.
Prior to joining the professional ranks, the Apple Valley, Minnesota native spent four years at the University of North Dakota (WCHA), where he became the Fighting Sioux’s all-time leader in wins (80) and shutouts (15). In addition, he ranks third all-time in goals against average (2.23) and save percentage (.918), was a two-time First Team All-American (1997-98, 1999-00) and was a member of the school’s 1999-00 Division I Men’s National Championship team.
Goehring and his wife, Laura, have two daughters, Halle (5) and Lily (3).