Jon Cooper is the exception to the rule in almost every way. His story and road to the NHL have been told often, but seldom followed. From a high school hockey coach with none of the traditional “hockey men” credentials, to a back-to-back Stanley Cup winner, his path to hockey’s highest heights has been remarkable. His work with the Tampa Bay Lightning, the only NHL franchise he’s ever known, was rewarded today with a contract extension that will see him with the organization through 2024-25.

Per The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun, the contract extension carries an annual dollar value right near the upper echelon in the NHL coaching ranks; it’s said to be in the neighborhood of Joel Quenneville’s $5.5-million contract with the Florida Panthers. Simply put, Cooper is being rewarded handsomely for the stellar work he’s contributed to the franchise over the last number of years.

Beyond the fact that his road to the NHL is itself an exception to the rule, Cooper’s time in Tampa Bay, too, bucks a lot of trends we see in modern day coaching. After taking over on March 25, 2013, Cooper went until September 2020 without lifting the Stanley Cup. That run of seven-plus years without obtaining the ultimate prize isn’t something that most General Managers or owners are willing to put up with in today’s world, which prioritizes instant gratification in sports.

Many, this blogger included, made the mistake of calling for a change after 2017, or 2018, or 2019. The thought was that Cooper’s voice was getting stale. Or that he wasn’t willing to adapt in such a way that would allow his team to win. Or that change was needed just for the sake of change. What fools we turned out to be. The patience shown by Steve Yzerman and Julien BriseBois turned out to be the best possible thing they could have done, and the Lightning now have two additional Stanley Cups to show for it.

According to NHL.com, Cooper has coached 633 games with the Lightning to date in his tenure. If he coaches a full 82 games in each of the next four seasons that he’s under contract, that would bring him to a grand total of 963 with the franchise. While there’s no guarantee that he makes it to the end of the contract, given the nature of big league sports coaching carousels, it reasons to suggest that Cooper’s longevity with the Lightning will go down in the post-lockout history books as one of the most impressive streaks ever. Not bad for a lawyer from Prince George, British Columbia.

As always, thanks for reading.

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