Stingrays Announce Coaching Change

The South Carolina Stingrays, proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Washington Capitals and AHL’s Hershey Bears, announced Friday that Head Coach and Director of Hockey Operations Spiros Anastas has been relieved of his duties and will not return for the 2019-20 season. Assistant Coach Steve Bergin has been named the ninth Head Coach in franchise history and will be officially introduced at a press conference at 1 p.m. Friday afternoon.

“I would like to thank Spiros Anastas for his dedication and commitment to our team over this past season and wish him all the best in his future endeavors,” said Stingrays Principal Owner Todd Halloran. “As an organization, we are committed to getting better and not resting on our laurels. We are excited about refocusing our efforts and improving our team and our fan experience as we pursue our goal of winning our fourth Kelly Cup. At this point, we believe Steve Bergin is prepared to help lead us there.”

Bergin has been with the Stingrays since 2016, serving as an assistant coach for the last three seasons.“I believe that Steve Bergin is the best person to be our head coach as we go into the 2019-20 season," said Stingrays President Rob Concannon. "As an assistant coach, he helped guide us to the Kelly Cup Finals and helped oversee one of the best defensive teams in ECHL history. As a professional player, Steve won three championships and knows what it takes to succeed. We are excited about this next chapter and we’re going to work immediately.”

A native of Groton, Mass., Bergin was part of the Stingrays’ Kelly Cup Finals appearance in 2017 and helped the team to their best regular season in franchise history the following year.

“I’m very excited to lead the Stingrays on the ice during the coming season,” Bergin said. “I want to thank Todd and Rob for this great opportunity and I’m looking forward to working with the team and the organization in our pursuit of a championship.”

Before starting his coaching career Bergin spent five seasons as a defenseman with the Pensacola Ice Flyers of the Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL) from 2011-16. He led Pensacola to three SPHL titles in 2013, 2014 and 2016 as well as a regular season championship during the 2013-14 season. Prior to turning pro, Bergin played four seasons of NCAA Hockey at the University of Connecticut and was a product of Lawrence Academy as well as the Boston Jr. Bruins.The Stingrays had an overall record of 35-31-5-1 during the 2018-19 season and finished in third place in the South Division standings. South Carolina’s season came to an end after a first-round Kelly Cup Playoffs loss to the Orlando Solar Bears in five games.For all the latest news and updates, follow the Stingrays on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.