Nearly 15 years as a professional hockey player and another 15 years as a coach, Mark Reeds was a respected figure in the hockey world.
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Ottawa Senators assistant coach Mark Reeds has passed away at the age of 55 after a battle with cancer.
In a press release by the Senators, team owner Eugene Melnyk expressed its sincere condolences to Reeds’ family and acknowledged him as a charismatic individual with a passion for hockey, the players and his family.
“It is with very heavy hearts that all of us within the Senators family remember Mark who was truly a wonderful father, husband, player, coach and friend. Mark’s charismatic fighting spirit was present right until the end. We are all better for having had the opportunity to work so closely with Mark whose passion for life, hockey and his family will leave an indelible mark on our organization. The entire Ottawa Senators organization sends its deepest condolences to the Reeds family,” Melnyk wrote.
Reeds was drafted by the St. Louis Blues in the fifth round, 86th overall, of the 1979 NHL Entry Draft and played in 365 NHL games, registering 159 points (45 goals, 114 assists) with the Blues and the Hartford Whalers between 1981-89.
He went on to spend four seasons as head coach of the United Hockey League’s Kalamazoo Wings. Before his arrival in Kalamazoo, Reeds led the UHL’s Missouri River Otters for four seasons. He began his coaching career with the ECHL’s Peoria Rivermen prior to the 1996-97 campaign and spent three seasons with the club.
Reeds was hired by the Ottawa Senators in 2011 under newly-hired head coach Paul MacLean and was named one of MacLean’s assistants. The team made the playoffs three times in the first four seasons with MacLean and Reeds on the staff.
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