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Kirk MacDonald, Reading Royals

Kirk MacDonald, Reading Royals

Wednesday, May 24th

Kirk MacDonald enters his second full season as Royals Head Coach and Director of Hockey Operations in 2018-19. During his first full season at the helm, MacDonald navigated Reading to a third-place finish in the North Division at 39-24-9 (87 points). Under MacDonald's direction, leadin-scorer Matt Willows finished third in the league with 74 points. Reading completed 2017-18 ranked sixth in team defense with 2.76 goals-against per game. A 2013 Kelly Cup champion with the Royals, MacDonald was named Head Coach and Director of Hockey Operations on May 24, 2017 and is the seventh coach in the team's 17-year history. Originally tabbed the Royals interim Head Coach in April 2017, MacDonald led the team to wins in the final three regular season games of the 2016-17 season, plus two victories in the Kelly Cup Playoffs vs. Brampton.

MacDonald joined the Royals as an assistant to Coach Larry Courville in July of 2014. During his tenure as assistant, the Royals compiled a record of 119-72-14-8 (.610 win percentage). The team qualified for playoffs in all three seasons during which MacDonald served as an assistant. Prior to joining the Royals as an assistant coach, MacDonald served the 2013-14 season as an assistant at his alma mater, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York.

MacDonald recorded 217 points and 358 penalty minutes in 406 games over seven-plus professional seasons. He played 272 of those games in the AHL and 24 Calder Cup Playoff games. In the ECHL, MacDonald had two stints with the Royals, 2008-09 and 2012-13. MacDonald had a stellar four-season and five-year career at R.P.I. After leading R.P.I. in goals (16) and points (36) and being selected the team’s MVP in his junior season (2004-05), MacDonald was diagnosed with testicular cancer. The diagnosis kept him out of action the following year. In 2006-07, MacDonald returned for his senior season as team captain, led the squad in goals (12) and tied for the team lead in points (27). For his efforts, MacDonald was voted as R.P.I.’s Most Inspirational Player. That year, MacDonald received the Livingston W. Houston Citizenship Award at R.P.I. honoring the ‘First Citizen of the College,” for character, leadership, scholarship and athletic ability and was also a finalist for the Hockey Humanitarian Award, which is awarded to college hockey’s finest citizen.

Coaching Record		Reg. Season				Playoffs
Season	Team	Gms	W	L	T	Gms	W	L
2016-17	Reading Royals (ECHL)	3	3	0	0	6	2	4
2017-18	Reading Royals (ECHL)	72	39	24	9	4	0	4
	ECHL Totals	75	42	24	9	10	2	8