Two ex-Peoria Rivermen coaches fired by Buffalo Sabres as head coach, assistant of NHL team

Dave Eminian, Peoria Journal Star
Coach Don Granato looks on from the Buffalo Sabres bench.
Coach Don Granato looks on from the Buffalo Sabres bench.

PEORIA — Don Granato and Jason Christie teamed up to climb pro hockey's ladder together, from their days with the Peoria Rivermen in the ECHL, all the way to the NHL with the Buffalo Sabres.

That journey ended -- for now -- when the Sabres fired head coach Granato and assistant coach Christie on Tuesday, along with video coordinator Matt Smith.

“I would like to thank Don for his time in Buffalo and commitment to the Sabres organization,” said Buffalo general manager Kevyn Adams in a statement released by the NHL team. “He has been integral in the development of many of our players and has undoubtedly been the right coach to bring us to where we are now, but I felt it was necessary to move in a different direction at this point in time. My expectation is to be a consistent contender and unfortunately that goal has not been met.”

“I would also like to thank Jason and Matt for their contributions to the team. This is not a decision I take lightly but know it is in the best interest of our team moving forward.”

The Sabres went 39-37-6 this season. But the organization missed the playoffs for a 13th straight season, the last three full seasons under Granato.

More: 'Grateful and humbled': NFL veteran leads Peoria sports hall of fame's latest class

Granato, 56, took over as Sabres head coach midway through the 2020-21 campaign. Buffalo went 122-125-27 with him at the helm.

Considered one of the brightest minds in the game and an established developer of young players, Granato got the most out of the talent he was given in Buffalo.

He got the most out of it in Peoria, too, when he led the Rivermen to a storybook championship, with Christie as his player-assistant coach.

Rivermen won ECHL title under Granato and Christie

Jason Christie raised the Kelly Cup at Carver Arena after leading the Peoria Rivermen to a championship in 1999-2000. Now he's reached the NHL after 17 years of coaching in the minors, hired as an assistant coach at NHL Buffalo.
Jason Christie raised the Kelly Cup at Carver Arena after leading the Peoria Rivermen to a championship in 1999-2000. Now he's reached the NHL after 17 years of coaching in the minors, hired as an assistant coach at NHL Buffalo.

The Rivermen were a young team that season but reached the ECHL championship series against a veteran Louisiana team that had won 21 straight games on its Cajundome home ice.

Peoria lost the first two games of the best-of-7 series and faced the next three at Louisiana. Many gave up on the Rivermen as finished. They were anything but, as they went down to Louisiana and swept three games -- including two in overtime -- to bring the series back to Peoria.

The Rivermen then clinched the Kelly Cup in Game 6 in Carver Arena on an overtime goal. The Journal Star headline the next morning showed the goal celebration on its front page, under the headline "Kelly's Heroes."

Storybook stuff, with a glorious footnote added later when Granato and Christie were inducted into the Rivermen Hall of Fame, further cementing their place in the 42-year franchise's proud history.

Granato, Christie and that entire 1999-2000 Rivermen championship team were inducted into the Greater Peoria Sports Hall of Fame in March on what was the 25th anniversary of the team's title.

Granato later became head coach for the St. Louis Blues primary farm team at AHL Worcester, then spent a season as the Blues assistant coach in the NHL.

He went on to be head coach of the AHL's Chicago Wolves for two seasons, became a Chicago Blackhawks assistant coach for two seasons, then spent two seasons as an assistant in Buffalo, taking over as head coach in the midst of the second campaign.

Former Peoria Rivermen player and head coach Jason Christie, now an assistant coach in the NHL with Buffalo, hugs his grandmother, who was part of a large family contingent that traveled to Edmonton to see Christie and the Sabres on March 17, 2022.
Former Peoria Rivermen player and head coach Jason Christie, now an assistant coach in the NHL with Buffalo, hugs his grandmother, who was part of a large family contingent that traveled to Edmonton to see Christie and the Sabres on March 17, 2022.

Christie led the Rivermen to their championship as a player-coach in 1999-2000, then took over for Granato as head coach in 2000-01 and spent five years at Peoria's helm.

He won 233 games, then a Peoria franchise coaching record. Christie had an 18-year head coaching career in the ECHL with Peoria, Ontario, Tulsa and Jacksonville. His 667 victories made him the winningest coach in ECHL history.

Christie spent two seasons as Granato's assistant coach at AHL Chicago, then in 2021-22 began a three-year run as Buffalo's assistant coach.

Dave Eminian is the Journal Star sports columnist, and covers Bradley men's basketball, the Rivermen and Chiefs. He writes the Cleve In The Eve sports column for pjstar.com. He can be reached at 686-3206 or deminian@pjstar.com. Follow him on X.com @icetimecleve.

This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Buffalo Sabres coaching staff changes strike two ex-Peoria Rivermen coaches

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