After 12 seasons, Tony Amonte (Hingham, Mass.) has left Thayer Academy for the NHL. Amonte recently stepped down as head coach of the Tigers to become a scout for the Florida Panthers, according to both the school and Amonte. The move comes after Thayer played to a record of 7-13-2 last season. Amonte’s teams played...
After 12 seasons, Tony Amonte (Hingham, Mass.) has left Thayer Academy for the NHL.
Amonte recently stepped down as head coach of the Tigers to become a scout for the Florida Panthers, according to both the school and Amonte.
The move comes after Thayer played to a record of 7-13-2 last season.
Amonte’s teams played to a record of 155-117-15-13 in his time at Thayer, while going to two NEPSAC finals and winning one in 2015-16 when the Tigers took down Westminster. That finals-winning team went 20-8-1-2 during the season.
The best record under Amonte came in 2013-14 when the Tigers went 20-3-2-1, but bowed out in the NEPSAC quarterfinals to Berkshire.
All of this success came after Amonte’s first two seasons in 2010-11 and 2011-12 saw Thayer go 5-17-1 and 6-15-4.
In 2018, Amonte graduated both Jay O’Brien (Hingham, Mass.) and Aidan McDonough (Milton, Mass.). O’Brien was drafted that summer by the Philadelphia Flyers with the 19th overall selection in the NHL Draft and will serve as an assistant captain at Boston University this season. McDonough will captain Northeastern this season and averaged over a point per game last year for the Huskies. He was a seventh-round pick by the Vancouver Canucks in 2019.
Amonte also coached his sons Ty (Norwell, Mass.) and Tristan (Norwell, Mass.) while at Thayer. Ty will play at UConn this year after five seasons at BU, while Tristan begins his second campaign with the Terriers.
This 12-year head coaching stint at Thayer wasn’t Amonte’s first time as a Tiger. From 1985-89, the forward was a key cog, most notably posting 73 points in 25 games during his senior campaign.
Amonte followed that up with a standout, two-year career at BU from 1989-91, amassing 126 points in 79 games and leading the Terriers to a national championship appearance in 1991.
On the heels of the Frozen Four berth, Amonte bolted for the NHL and posted 416 goals and 900 points over 1,174 games with the New York Rangers, Chicago Blackhawks, Phoenix Coyotes, Philadelphia Flyers and Calgary Flames. In his 15 full seasons, he played nine with Chicago — the most of any team he suited up for.
Thayer is in the middle of interviewing candidates for the job.
