Don Jackson: The milestones of his coaching career

“It’s regarding the players.” This is the guiding principle of someone who set out from the State of Hockey in Minnesota to write a success story in Europe that in 2022 is still not quite finished. When you look into the trophy cabinet from Don Jackson eyes are already in danger: the two Stanley Cup rings from the active time sparkle too much.

In connection with championship titles at the Eisbären Berlin (2005, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013), dem EC Red Bull Salzburg (2014) in Austria and his current team Red Bull München (2016, 2017 and 2018) that would easily have been enough for two glorious (coach) careers.

By the Munich coach meticulously making sure that Patrick Hager, Yannic Seidenberg and Co. remain the main actors in his ice fairy tales, the 65-year-old enjoys such a dazzling reputation in gaming circles. These milestones, records and special moments also made a decisive contribution to this.

01

Trainer stations and milestones

1) 95 second comeback without a goalie

Following his first championship as an assistant coach for the Eisbären Berlin, Don Jackson took over the Düsseldorfer EG as head coach for the 2005/06 season. In an intensive playoff series, the end in the semi-finals was looming – 2:3 behind once morest the Kölner Haie in their own hall. Where other coaches would have waited until the last minute, Don Jackson gambled much earlier and got his goalie Andrej Trefilov off the ice. Under the pressure of a six versus three majority and the heated atmosphere on Brehmstrasse, Cologne buckled. Three goals within 95 seconds brought Jackson’s team to the final.

2) A prevented champion team

The year 2007 marked the Don Jackson comeback in the capital as well as the beginning of an era in which the Eisbären Berlin dominated the DEL at will. Even in the 2009/10 season, when match luck was lacking in the playoffs and the title ultimately went to Hanover, insiders saw the Berliners as “failed champions”. 36 games were won in the main round and a total of 123 (!) points were scored – an undisputed DEL record to this day!

Don Jackson always makes you feel good, he takes you seriously as a person, not just as a professional

Deron Quint (DEL champion with Berlin and Munich)

3) Kabinenansprache vs. Momentum

The man from Minnesota repeated the title hat-trick from Berlin as coach of Red Bull Munich between 2016 and 2018. The cabin speech in the final series once morest Jackson’s former club from Berlin is unforgettable. The polar bears were able to make up for a 1:3 deficit in the series and drove to the decisive Game Seven in Munich with the momentum. “Don pushed the right buttons in the dressing room. In the evening we shot Berlin out of the hall as if the two previous games hadn’t happened,” recalls Christian Winkler (Managing Director Sport Red Bull Hockey) of the 6-3 win.

4) Red Bulls rock Europe

The 2014 reformed European premier class (Champions Hockey League) was long considered kryptonite for the representatives of the DEL. At the latest in the round of sixteen was the last stop. Once once more, Don Jackson found a way for his team to compete with elite clubs from Sweden and the Czech Republic. In the 2018/19 season, Red Bull Munich reached following victories over EV Zug (2:3/2:0), the Malmö Redhawks (2:1/5:5), and EC Red Bull Salzburg (0:0/3 :1) as the first German team the CHL final. Three years later, Munich are once more just one step away from the final. “It is in our hands to accomplish something great. Everyone is focused and knows what they have to do,” says Don Jackson ahead of the semifinals once morest 17-time Finnish champions Tappara Tampere

5) Let’s talk regarding Six-Hundred, Baby!

Two sentences from master coach to master coach. In March, Niklas Sundblad, then coach of the Schwennig Wild Wings, congratulated the Munich player on a rather unspectacular 2-1 home win on paper (0-1 | 1-0 | 1-0). But the Swede had apparently counted: “Congratulations Don on your 600th DEL victory. Your teams are always very well prepared.” Don Jackson actually only needed 917 games in the PENNY DEL for this milestone.

02

Don Jackson: Achievements and records in the DEL

• Eight championship titles with Eisbären Berlin and Red Bull Munich

• Ten finals in 16 seasons as head coach

• Behind the gang in over 900 games

• Highest win rate in the main round (65%) and in the playoffs (68%)

• Worse than third place only once in the main round (2013 with the Eisbären Berlin)

03

Don Jackson: family, wife and children

How does a coaching guru like Don Jackson actually spend the long summer break in the ice Hockey? The 65-year-old travels to the USA, where he lives with his wife Nancy on a farm in Wichita (Kansas). “Privately, I’m a completely normal family man,” says the Munich coach with his two daughters, Carly and Liza, and his son, Clint. Liza in particular takes following her father and played for the OSC Eisladies during his time with the Eisbären Berlin.