Noreen leaves Phantoms to coach Toronto ECHL affiliate

July 1, 2015 at 9:48a.m.

YOUNGSTOWN

Anthony Noreen has never been shy about his ultimate goal of coaching in the National Hockey League.

On Tuesday, he took the next step toward achieving it by accepting the head coaching position with the Orlando Solar Bears of the East Coast Hockey League.

Noreen, 32, spent five years in Youngstown, including the last four as the team’s head coach and general manager. He leaves the United States Hockey League after earning coach of the year honors last season, to join a minor league affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

“My goal has always been to coach hockey at the highest level,” Noreen said Tuesday. “Orlando and the Toronto Maple Leafs organization has provided me with the chance to be a head coach at a professional level and I felt that was something I could not pass up.”

In four seasons behind the bench with the Phantoms, Noreen was 126-99-19 with three playoff appearances. His name had come up in previous coaching searches, especially at the college level.

But Noreen was waiting for the right fit.

“I’ve always said it was going to take a tremendous opportunity to pull me away from Youngstown,” Noreen said. “I believe that’s what this is.”

In 2011, Bruce Zoldan, then the Phantoms’ sole owner, took a chance on a 28-year-old with zero head coaching experience. Through plenty of organizational uncertainty and questions about its future in Youngstown, Noreen provided a steadying face for the franchise on and off the ice.

“Bruce gave me a chance to be a young coach in this league when no one else would have, or probably should have,” Noreen said. “He was the first phone call I made and whatever awkward or uncomfortable feeling could’ve come from that was immediately gone, because I think he was more excited for me than I was.”

He also made a tremendous impression on new co-owners Troy and Aafke Loney in their short time working together.

Noreen agreed to terms with Orlando on Monday evening and said he spent the rest of the night calling each member of the Phantoms’ front office and every returning player on the roster to inform them of his decision and thank them for their help. He said the feedback he received was beyond positive, making the decision to leave that much more difficult.

“Saying goodbye to the Youngstown Phantoms was probably the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do,” Noreen said. “I really enjoyed my time in Youngstown. The city, its people, everything about it has been great. The support we received from the community was tremendous.

“I feel like I can honestly say that I’m leaving the organization in a better place than when I got here, and what more can you really ask for?”

He will be looking to achieve the same in Orlando. The Solar Bears in their current form were founded in 2012. They play at the Amway Center, a 17,000-plus capacity arena in the heart of downtown. It’s also the home to the NBA’s Orlando Magic.

When interviewing for the position, Noreen said he felt there were a lot of similarities between his former organization and his new one.

“Between what they expect, how they go about their business and the way they want their players and coaches to carry themselves on and off the ice, I think there were a lot of parallels,” Noreen said. “I want to thank [chairman] Joe Haleski, [president and CEO] Jason Siegel, and the entire Toronto Maple Leafs organization for this special opportunity.”

Noreen said he will be back and forth from Youngstown to Toronto to Orlando for the remainder of the summer. His new duties include participating in Maple Leafs development and preseason camps during the offseason.

“I believe the USHL was a developmental league for me as a coach, as much as it was for the players,” Noreen said. “What I’ve learned over the past five years in Youngstown is invaluable and for that I am forever indebted.”

The Phantoms will conduct a national search for a new head coach beginning immediately.