George Kingston

George Kingston was Canadian but coached the German ice hockey team at the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympics. Kingston studied at the University of Alberta, where he earned a bachelor’s degree, a masters’ degree, and a Ph.D. in education and physical education. Kingston became a coach, starting with the University of Calgary hockey team in 1967 as an assistant coach. He became their head coach in 1968, intermittently serving in that role through 1988, and helping them win the Canada West Championship in 1970, 1974, 1976, 1980, 1986, and 1988.

Kingston coached both internationally and in the NHL. In the NHL, he was an assistant with the Calgary Flames from 1980-82, with the Minnesota North Stars from 1988-89, with the Atlanta Thrashers from 1999-2001, and with the Florida Panthers from 2001-07, and he was head coach of the San Jose Sharks from 1991-83.

Internationally, Kingston was an assistant with Team Canada at the 1984 Olympic Winter Games and at the 1983 World Championships and was then head coach and general manager at the 1994 Worlds. In addition to working with the German National Team from 1994-98, when he coached them at the Nagano Olympics, he coached in Norway, Mexico, Lithuania, and with EC Salzburg in Austria.