DENVER – The Colorado Avalanche Hockey Club announced today that Brett McLean has been named Assistant Coach, replacing Dave Hakstol who accepted a head coach position with the NCAA’s Arizona State University men’s hockey program. McLean will join current assistant Nolan Pratt, Goaltending Coach Jussi Parkkila and Assistant/Video Coach Brett Heimlich on Head Coach Jared Bednar’s staff.
McLean, 48, most recently was on an NHL bench when he was an assistant with the Vancouver Canucks in 2025-26. Part of his duties in that role saw him in charge of the power play, which operated at a 21.8% success rate that season. Prior to his lone campaign in that role, McLean spent eight seasons in the Minnesota Wild organization. In the final two, he was Head Coach of the American Hockey League’s Iowa Wild (2023-24 to 2024-25).
“Firstly, we want to thank ‘Hak’ for his hard work and dedication while he was on our staff, and we wish him and his family all the best as he takes on a new challenge as Head Coach at Arizona State. In Brett, we’re getting an experienced coach and someone who is familiar with the culture here,” said Avalanche President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Joe Sakic. “I’ve known Brett dating back to when we were teammates. I can speak to his outstanding character and work ethic, and I’m confident our players will thrive in the areas he’ll be coaching them in. Circumstances are unusual when this kind of an adjustment is made to the coaching staff so early into a season, but we’re fortunate it worked out bringing Brett onboard and we’re excited to see his contributions.”
“I am honored and excited for this opportunity to be an Assistant Coach with the Avalanche,” said McLean. “I enjoyed my time here as a player, and I am eager to re-join the organization as a coach. I’m looking forward to returning to Colorado, getting acclimated to this team quickly and getting to know everyone here so that we won’t miss a beat and can keep our focus on winning games.”
During McLean’s three-year run as an assistant in Minnesota (2020-21 to 2022-23), the Wild qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs all three campaigns and logged a .661 points percentage over the three seasons. That was the sixth-highest in the NHL in that span. McLean was on the bench when the Wild boasted the 2020-21 Calder Memorial Trophy winner in Kirill Kaprizov and was with the club for two of Kaprizov’s NHL All-Star Game selections (2022 and 2023).
A native of Comox, British Columbia, McLean began his coaching career as Assistant Coach for Iowa and served in that role from 2017-18 to 2019-20. The team made it to the Second Round of the Calder Cup Playoffs in 2018-19 and had the fourth-best record in the league the following year before the season was canceled due to COVID-19. In the pandemic-shortened campaign, McLean coached Gerald Mayhew – who took home the Les Cunningham Award (league’s most valuable player) and the Willie Marshall Award (league’s top goal scorer) – as well as Sam Anas, who won the John B. Sollenberger Trophy as the AHL’s top scorer.
A forward in his playing days, McLean played 19 seasons of professional hockey, including six NHL campaigns. Two of those seasons were with the Avalanche from 2005-06 to 2006-07 and he set career-highs in assists (31) and points (40) while playing all 82 games with Colorado in 2005-06. That spring saw him compete in the lone Stanley Cup Playoffs games of his career, suiting up in eight tilts (0g/1a). The following season with the Avalanche, he registered 35 points (15g/20a) in 78 contests.
In all, McLean played in 385 NHL games and tallied 162 points (56g/106a) with the Avalanche, Chicago Blackhawks and Florida Panthers. After his last NHL appearance with the Panthers in 2008-09, McLean went on to play eight more seasons in Europe. That began with a six-year run for SC Bern (2009-11) and HC Lugano (2012-15) of the Swiss National League, and his final two were with EHC Black Wings Linz in Austria’s highest pro league. In that part of his career, he captured the 2009-10 NLA Championship with Bern. McLean accumulated 1,111 career professional games as a player, which also included 274 contests in the AHL (1998-04, 2011-12), 241 games in Switzerland (2009-15), 91 showings in Austria (2015-17), 74 games in the IHL (2000-01), 38 skates in the SHL (2004-05) and eight showings in the ECHL (1999-00).
Prior to turning pro, McLean competed for five seasons in the WHL with Tacoma (1994-95), Kelowna (1995-99) and Brandon (1998-99). He is the Rockets franchise leader in career goals (166), career assists (209) and career points (375). Internationally, McLean competed for Canada at the 1998 IIHF World Junior Championship and chipped in two points (1g/1a) in seven games.
McLean was originally drafted by the Dallas Stars in the ninth round (242nd overall) in the 1997 NHL Draft.
