Guelph Storm announce new head coach

Cory Stillman pictured standing against a blank backdrop. (Courtesy: Guelph Storm)

The Guelph Storm have a new bench boss.

In a news release, General Manager George Burnett announced Cory Stillman has been named as the team’s new head coach.

“Cory brings a wealth of experience as a player and champion as well as a mentor and a teacher of young players,” Burnett said. “His desire to return to a head coaching role and lead our group both on and off the ice was very apparent throughout this process. I look forward to working closely with Cory to continue to move our program forward.”

Stillman played in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) for the Windsor Spitfires and Peterborough Petes before moving on to the National Hockey League (NHL) where he played for the Calgary Flames, St. Louis Blues, Tampa Bay Lightning, Carolina Hurricanes, Ottawa Senators, and Florida Panthers. He was part of the Stanley Cup winning teams in 2003/2004 and 2005/2006.

Once he wrapped up his career as a player, he began working in Player Development for the Florida Panthers and Carolina Hurricanes.

He returned to the OHL in 2017/2018 as a head coach for the Sudbury Wolves.

Stillman spent three seasons there before going back the NHL as the Arizona Coyotes assistant coach.

The team announced former head coach Chad Wiseman had been “relieved of his duties with the club” in April after joining the organization for the 2018/2019 season. Wiseman began his two year tenure as head coach after Scott Walker, the team’s president and co-owner, suddenly stepped down to address health issues in September 2022.

The Storm are coming off a disappointing end to their 2023/2024 season, exiting in the first round of the OHL playoffs for the third straight year.