Two-Time Kelly Cup Champion Chuck Weber Hired as Gladiators Head Coach

The Atlanta Gladiators announced on Thursday that Chuck Weber has been named the fifth Head Coach and General Manager of Hockey Operations in team history.

“Chuck’s winning pedigree and overall success at our level was a key factor in our decision to bring him to Atlanta,” said Gladiators majority owner Toby Jeffreys. “He is committed to winning and is a very detail oriented guy who understands the business side of things as well as owns four championship rings as a coach, all of which speaks for itself.”

Weber, 44, returns to the ECHL after seven seasons in the AHL, KHL and EIHL. The Lockport, NY native previously served at the “AA” level as the Vice President of Hockey Operations & Head Coach of the Cincinnati Cyclones from 2006-2010. Weber led his team to the ECHL Conference Finals in three of his four years behind the bench, capturing the ECHL Kelly Cup Championship twice (2008, 2010). With the 2010 Kelly Cup title, Weber earned his 45th career Kelly Cup playoff win, passing Davis Payne (Alaska Aces) for most by a coach in any four-year period in ECHL history. The veteran bench boss was voted ECHL Coach of the Year in 2007-08, after being named runner-up in 2006-07. Weber holds an overall regular season record as an ECHL Head Coach of 177-92-19.

“My goals are to maximize this team’s potential, develop players for the AHL all while winning as many games as possible,” said Weber. “I have learned what it takes to be a consistently successful organization at the ECHL level. There will be a lot of ups and downs throughout the season, but I feel my experience will benefit in managing those situations.”

Weber began his professional coaching career as the Assistant Coach with the Orlando Solar Bears of the International Hockey League (IHL) in 1999. In his second season in Orlando, he helped the team win the Turner Cup Championship after making to the final the year prior. Weber also has lengthy experience as an AHL Head Coach in the Florida Panthers organization for the Rochester Americans in 2010-11 and San Antonio Rampage from 2011-2014. Most recently, Weber returned to Rochester, NY and spent last season as an Assistant Coach for the Buffalo Sabres AHL affiliate. In addition, Weber was the Head Coach for Medvescak Zagreb of the KHL for the first part of the 2014-15 season before finishing the year with the Coventry Blaze of the EIHL in Great Britain. In 2015-16, Weber returned to Coventry and won the EIHL playoff title, his fourth championship overall and third as a head coach.

“I want to shape this team into a squad that the community will be proud of on a nightly basis. One that is hard working and plays a smart 200-foot game,” added Weber. It won’t happen overnight but I want us to get better every day and be ready to peak in the spring in time for the playoffs.”

The Atlanta Gladiators 15th anniversary season kicks off at the Infinite Energy Arena on Friday, October 20th against the Florida Everblades at 7:35 PM. For ticket package information, visit the official team website at www.atlantagladiators.com or call the main office line at 770-497-5100.

The Gladiators are members of the ECHL, the nation’s premier "AA" hockey league. All home games are played at the 11,355-seat Infinite Energy Arena, located just off I-85 on Sugarloaf Parkway in Duluth – where parking is always free. The Gladiators have established an unrivaled commitment to excellence, maintaining a distinctive reputation for affordable and family-friendly sports entertainment and consistently ranked as one of the top “Things To Do” in the Atlanta area and across the North Georgia region.For all the latest team news, contests, and more visit AtlantaGladiators.com, or “like” the Gladiators on Facebook (www.facebook.com/AtlantaGladiators), follow the team on Twitter (www.twitter.com/ATLGladiators), Instagram (www.instagram.com/atlgladiators) or Snapchat (www.snapchat.com) at "gladshockey".

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