columbiainferno.com

07/13/2009 9:16 AM - COLUMBIA, SC (July 13, 2009) - The Columbia Inferno announced today Coach Troy Mann has accepted the assistant coaching position with the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League for the 2009-2010 season.

Mann started with the Inferno in 2005-06 as the assistant coach and was promoted to head coach in the spring of 2006 where he spent the last two seasons behind the bench for Columbia. He maintained a regular season record of 62-62-20 and 8-5 during the 2007-08 playoff run making it to the South Division Finals.  Last season, while the Inferno suspended operations, he served as associate head coach of the Charlotte Checkers.

"Troy is an exceptional person and family man, not just an excellent coach, which is why he was kept under contract even though we weren't playing until next year," said Inferno Owner Ezra Riber. "His talents are obvious and his work ethic is only exceeded by his passion for the game so we always knew that his moving up to the AHL was inevitable. We are going to miss him here and he'll be tough to replace, but I believe that he is on the NHL express like some other former Inferno personnel."

Mann’s 11-year professional playing career included a stint with the Mississippi SeaWolves in the ECHL, where he was the first player to sign with the franchise in 1996 and won the Kelly Cup while playing for Washington head coach Bruce Boudreau in 1999. Woods was also a member of the 1999 SeaWolves, serving as both a player and an assistant coach. Mann is a 1993 graduate of the University of Toronto, where he played for the Varsity Blues.