Hockey

Report: Dave Barr Leaves San Diego Gulls to Coach Avangard Omsk

Published: Dec 1, 2024, 2:37 PM
4 min read
Updated: Jul 8, 2025, 6:55 AM
Fact checked by:
Marco D'Amico
Dave Barr helped the New Jersey Devils reach the Stanley Cup Final in 2012

Dave Barr helped the New Jersey Devils reach the Stanley Cup Final in 2012 (Photo by Tony Kurdzuk/The Star-Ledger)

64-year-old Canadian coach Dave Barr has left the Anaheim Ducks' affiliate team, the AHL San Diego Gulls, to become an assistant coach with Avangard Omsk in the KHL, a well-informed source told RG.

Barr will become an assistant to 53-year-old Guy Boucher, who had previously agreed to head Avangard earlier this week. The Canadian coaches will arrive in Russia by mid-December to head the Omsk club after the break. Their debut game could be as early as an away game against HC Sibir on December 17.

“Barr could have headed a KHL club himself, as Benoit Groulx did at Traktor. But Dave decided to become an assistant to Boucher, with whom he has been friends for a long time,” the source told RG. “Both coaches will be signing contracts until 2026, which Barr likely being tasked with handling strategy and special teams for Avangard."

Barr has been tan assistant coach for the San Diego Gulls, the Ducks' AHL affiliate, since August 2024.

Barr spent 11 seasons as an assistant coach in the Colorado Avalanche, Minnesota Wild, New Jersey Devils, Buffalo Sabres, and San Jose Sharks. He also served as an associate coach for the Florida Panthers in 2016-17. He helped the Devils reach the Stanley Cup Final in 2012.

From 2021-23, Barr worked as head coach for the Vienna Capitals of the ICEHL, Austria's top professional league. Barr also helped Team Canada win the 2021 U-18 World Championship as head coach.

During his 13-year NHL career, he played for the Boston Bruins, New York Rangers, St. Louis Blues, Hartford Whalers, Detroit Red Wings, New Jersey Devils, and Dallas Stars. As a forward, he scored 332 points (128 goals, 204 assists) in 614 games before retiring from the NHL in 1994.

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Sergey Demidov is Head of News at RG.org and has covered global sports since 2007. His work spans the Olympics, FIFA World Cups, IOC events, and Stanley Cup Finals. A former sports department deputy chief editor at Gazeta.Ru and TASS News Agency, and current senior editor at NHL.com/ru, Sergey has interviewed stars like Alex Ovechkin and Jaromir Jagr, former WADA and FIFA presidents Craig Reedy and Sepp Blatter, and coaches like Fabio Capello. He specializes in hockey and publishes in English and Russian.
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Daria Tuboltseva
Daria Tuboltseva
Hockey Reporter

Daria Tuboltseva has worked as a sports journalist since 2014 and has specialized in hockey coverage since 2016. She’s reported from some of the world’s biggest sporting events, including the Olympic Games (Beijing 2022), the FIFA World Cup (2018), the IIHF World Championships (2016–2019, 2021), the IIHF World Junior Championship (2019), and every Gagarin Cup Final since 2017.

Her work has appeared in leading Russian sports outlets like Championat.com and Sport24, as well as on the official websites of the KHL and the Women’s Hockey League (WHL). Daria has conducted exclusive interviews with some of the sport’s most recognized names, including Alex Ovechkin, Jaromir Jagr, Kirill Kaprizov, Sergei Bobrovsky, and Igor Shesterkin.

Beyond her writing, Daria brings extensive on-camera experience. She hosted NHL Today on Yandex.Efir and has produced powerful long-form projects such as the documentary Lokomotiv Crash and the series Hockey Country, featuring stars like Ovechkin, Malkin, Bobrovsky, Vasilevskiy, and Panarin. Her work has taken her to NHL games across North America and international events like the NHL Global Series in Europe.

In addition to her media career, Daria is a certified integrative nutritionist with a focus on sports nutrition. She works one-on-one with KHL players, helping them optimize performance and recovery through tailored nutrition plans. Her ability to blend media expertise with athlete support gives her a unique presence in the professional hockey world.

Daria publishes in both English and Russian and is the creator of the Telegram channel Coolest Game on Earth, where she shares insights, interviews, and behind-the-scenes stories from the hockey world.

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