Senators' Cameron built strong resume in juniors

Long before Dave Cameron was hired as assistant coach of the Ottawa Senators three years ago, he was already building a reputable coaching resume in the Canadian Hockey League and internationally.

Cameron was promoted to coach of the Senators on Monday when general manager Bryan Murray fired Paul MacLean. In making the change, Murray cited an "obligation for a lot of people to perform better."

He's hoping Cameron can ignite the spark his team needs.

"He'll be a good teacher," Murray said. "We don't have a lot of older players, so the [younger ones] will certainly like Dave."

Cameron, 56, spent four seasons as the coach and general manager of the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors in the Ontario Hockey League before being hired by the Senators on June 23, 2011. In four seasons with the Majors, Cameron went 165-91-16 in 272 regular-season games. In 2010-11, he led the Majors to the OHL championship series and the championship game of the Memorial Cup.

He also guided the OHL's Toronto St. Michael's Majors from 2000-04 and led the team to a berth in the Eastern Conference Final in four consecutive seasons. He was also runner-up for OHL Coach of the Year in 2001 and 2002.

Cameron is known for an ability to develop players and lead them. He is familiar with the Senators farm system since he spent three seasons as coach of the American Hockey League's Binghamton Senators from 2004-07. In three years with Binghamton he went 105-106-29.

On an international level, Cameron helped bring Canada a silver medal at the 2011 IIHF World Junior Championship in Buffalo, N.Y., and was an associate coach for the Canadian National Junior Team that garnered silver at the 2010 WJC in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. He won a gold medal as an assistant coach at the 2009 WJC in Ottawa.

As coach of Canada in 2011, Cameron missed his chance at a gold medal when his team allowed five unanswered goals in the third period on the way to a 5-3 loss in the championship game.

Cameron played in 168 NHL games with the Colorado Rockies and New Jersey Devils from 1981-84 and had 53 points (25 goals, 28 assists). He was originally selected by the New York Islanders in the eighth round (No. 135) of the 1978 NHL Draft.