Drew Bannister

Drew Bannister (born April 9, 1974) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player who is the head coach for the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League (NHL). He played in the NHL for the Tampa Bay Lightning, Edmonton Oilers, Mighty Ducks of Anaheim and New York Rangers. He finished his playing career as a player and head coach for the Braehead Clan of the British Elite Ice Hockey League. Bannister was born in Belleville, Ontario, but grew up in Sudbury, Ontario.

Playing career
Bannister was selected in the second round, 26th overall, of the 1992 NHL Entry Draft by the Tampa Bay Lightning. Bannister was drafted from the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) where he won a Memorial Cup in 1993 and was chosen to the Memorial Cup All-Star team in 1992 and 1993. He also won World Junior Championship with Canada national junior team in 1994. Upon completing his junior eligibility, Bannister spent a year and a half with the Atlanta Knights of the International Hockey League (IHL), Tampa Bay's farm team.

Bannister played in the minors for most of his career but saw time in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, Edmonton Oilers, Tampa Bay Lightning, and New York Rangers. His most successful season came in 1996–97, when he played 65 games, scored a career-high 18 points, and played in 12 playoff games for the Oilers.

In 2002, Bannister moved to Europe and played for teams in Finland, Russia and Germany. In the 2007–08 season, he was named best defenceman while playing for Kassel Huskies of Germany's 2nd Bundesliga, and also won the championship which promoted the team to the Deutsche Eishockey Liga.

On August 6, 2009, Bannister made a return to North America after seven seasons, signing a one-year deal with the Ottawa Senators. He spent the majority of the season with their AHL affiliate, the Binghamton Senators, serving as captain. Binghamton's then-assistant coach, former AHL defenceman Mike Busniuk, happened to be Bannister's father-in-law.

Coaching career
On November 16, 2010, Bannister signed for the Hull Stingrays in the British Elite Ice Hockey League as a player and assistant coach. On July 29, 2011, Bannister was announced as a player and head coach of the Braehead Clan in the British Elite Ice Hockey League for the 2011–12 season, replacing Bruce Richardson.

On June 2, 2012, Bannister was announced as an assistant coach for the OHL's Owen Sound Attack, which effectively ended his playing career. On July 10, 2015, he left the assistant coaching job in Owen Sound to become a head coach for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds.

On June 5, 2018, he was hired as the head coach of the San Antonio Rampage in the American Hockey League (AHL), the top development team for the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League (NHL). In 2020, after the Rampage were sold and moved to southern Nevada, Bannister became head coach of the new Blues' affiliate in Springfield, Massachusetts.

On December 12, 2023, Bannister was named interim head coach of the St. Louis Blues of the NHL following the firing of Craig Berube. On May 8, 2024, following the 2023–24 season, Bannister was promoted to permanent head coach of the Blues, signing a two-year contract.