Former Florida Panthers Interim Head Coach and current New Jersey Devils Associate Coach Andrew Brunette was arrested Wednesday in South Florida, according to WPLG Local 10 News.
The alleged charges include DUI and disobeying a stop or yield signal.
Andrew Brunette Arrested
According to Local 10, Brunette has been arrested for alleged traffic violations two previous times. He paid a$260 fine for speeding in May 2022. Brunette was also ticketed in February 2021 for allegedly driving 27 mph in a school zone. That case was dismissed.
Brunette was named interim coach of the Panthers in late October 2021 after Joel Quenneville was dismissed by Florida’s management. Quenneville, coach of the Chicago Blackhawks from 2008 to 2018, was under investigation connected to the Blackhawks’ failure to act upon sexual abuse allegations during the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoff.
Under Brunette, the Panthers compiled a 58-18-6 record on the way to the top of the Atlantic Division. Florida was ultimately swept out of the second round by the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The Panthers hired Paul Maurice as their new Head Coach on June 22, 2022. Brunette, a Jack Adams Award runner-up, was named Associate Coach of the Devils on July 15.
As a Player
From 1996 to 2012, Brunette was a member of six NHL franchises and played 1110 games. He was originally drafted in 1993 by the Washington Capitals. After 62 games with the Capitals, he was selected by the Nashville Predators in the 1998 Expansion Draft. He scored the team’s first goal in its inaugural season, then spent two years with the Atlanta Thrashers.
For the 2001-02 season, Brunette joined the Minnesota Wild. He played in all but one of the Wild’s regular season games until the end of the 2003-04 season. After the lockout skipped the 2004-05 season, Brunette signed with the Colorado Avalanche.
Brunette rejoined the Wild for the 2008-09 season and stayed three more years. His last season was 2011-12 with the Chicago Blackhawks. At retirement, he had recorded 733 points and 314 PIM. He took a front-office role with the Wild following his retirement and eventually became Assistant General Manager until the end of the 2018-19 season.
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