WILKES-BARRE/SCRANTON, Pa. — The Pittsburgh Penguins have named Kirk MacDonald the new head coach of their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.
MacDonald played four years with the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) Engineers from 2002-06. He totaled 103 points in 137 games as a member of the Engineers. MacDonald prepped for his long pro career as a stalwart hockey player at RPI. His senior season saw him earn many accolades as captain of the team, including the 2007 Rensselaer Alumni Association Community Service Award, the USCHO.com Unsung Hero Award, RPI Most Inspirational Award, being named a Coca-Cola Community All-American and being a 2007 Hockey Humanitarian finalist and a Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award finalist.
MacDonald has been an outspoken advocate for cancer research and support as a cancer survivor himself. Through a grueling recovery from testicular cancer and a two-month-long stay in the hospital back in 2005, he has been cancer-free since and has been a beacon of support in every community he has lived in for cancer-related causes.
MacDonald began his professional career with the AHL Albany River Rats during the 2006-07 campaign. His River Rats career was highlighted by netting the game-winning goal in a 1-0 overtime victory in Game 6 of the first-round Calder Cup playoff series against the Philadelphia Phantoms in 2008.
As a player, MacDonald was a consistent source of offense, whether it was at the NCAA level at RPI, the ECHL level with the Florida Everblades, or with the Reading Royals, and in 272 games at the AHL level with the River Rats, the Providence Bruins, the Iowa Chops and the Houston Aeros. He also skated in 24 Calder Cup playoff games, helping the Bruins reach the Eastern Conference Finals in 2009. In 10 seasons as a professional hockey player, MacDonald scored 96 goals and 121 assists in 406 games.
The culmination of a long career came during the 2012–13 season, his final season as a pro, where he won the Kelly Cup with the Royals. During that run, he scored a shorthanded game-winning goal in a decisive Game 5 against the Cincinnati Cyclones that led the team to the final round to face off against the Stockton Thunder.
MacDonald, 40, joins the Penguins following two seasons as head coach at Dubuque in the United States Hockey League. Before that, he spent eight seasons with Reading of the ECHL in various roles including assistant coach, head coach, and director of hockey operations. He began his coaching career in 2013-14 as an assistant at RPI.
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