David William Cameron (born July 29, 1958) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former professional player. He is currently the head coach of the Ottawa 67's of the Ontario Hockey League. He was previously the head coach of the Vienna Capitals of the Erste Bank Eishockey Liga (EBEL) and the head coach of the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL) from December 2014 until the conclusion of the 2015–16 season. He also played in the NHL as a forward with the Colorado Rockies and New Jersey Devils between 1981 and 1984.
Cameron has been involved in coaching in ice hockey since the mid-1990s. From 1995 to 1997, he was head coach of the Detroit Falcons/Port Huron Border Cats franchise in the Colonial Hockey League. He then joined the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) as head coach of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds from 1997 to 1999, followed by being head coach of the Toronto St. Michael's Majors from 2000 to 2004. Cameron joined the American Hockey League (AHL) in 2004 when he became head coach of the Binghamton Senators until 2007, when he returned to the OHL as head coach of the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors until 2011. He then joined the NHL's Ottawa Senators as an assistant coach when Paul MacLean became the team's new head coach, and remained in that position until becoming head coach himself in December 2014.
Cameron has also coached in the international setting, including leading the Canada men's national under-18 ice hockey team to gold at the 2004 U-18 Junior World Cup.
Playing career
Cameron played university hockey with the University of Prince Edward Island from 1976 to 1979, during which he recorded 27 goals and 62 assists (89 points) in 49 games with the Panthers ice hockey team. He was drafted by the New York Islanders in the eighth round of the 1978 NHL Entry Draft.
After completing his university career, Cameron split the 1979–80 season between the Fort Wayne Komets of the International Hockey League and the Indianapolis Checkers of the Central Hockey League (CHL). In six games with the Komets, Cameron had three goals and six assists (nine points), and in 70 games with the Checkers, Cameron had 15 goals and 21 assists (36 points). In the playoffs, he had no points in seven games with Indianapolis.
Cameron returned to the Checkers for the 1980–81 season, where he had a breakout season, scoring 40 goals and 30 assists (70 points) in 78 games, along with 156 penalty minutes. In five playoff games, Cameron had two goals and three assists. On October 1, 1981, the Islanders traded Cameron and Bob Lorimer to the Colorado Rockies in exchange for the Rockies' first-round draft pick in the 1983 NHL Entry Draft, which the Islanders used to select future Hockey Hall of Famer Pat LaFontaine.
Cameron spent the 1981–82 season with the Rockies, save for two games with the Fort Worth Texans of the CHL. With Colorado, Cameron recorded 11 goals and 12 assists (23 points) in 66 games as the club failed to qualify for the 1982 Stanley Cup playoffs. During the subsequent off-season, the Rockies franchise was relocated to East Rutherford, New Jersey, to become the New Jersey Devils.
Cameron struggled in his second NHL season, as appeared in 35 games with the New Jersey Devils in 1982–83, scoring five goals and four assists (nine points). Cameron also spent time with the Wichita Wind of the CHL, scoring 6 goals and 9 assists (15 points) in 25 games.
Cameron spent the entire 1983–84 season with the Devils, scoring 9 goals and 12 assists (21 points) in a career-high 67 games.
Cameron split the 1984–85 season with the Maine Mariners and the Moncton Golden Flames of the American Hockey League (AHL), where he had 8 goals and 17 assists (25 points) in 49 games. After the season, he went back home and played with the Charlottetown Islanders and Fredericton Alpines of the NBSHL. During the 1994–95 season, Cameron made a one-game appearance with the Saint John Flames of the AHL.
Coaching career
Detroit Falcons/Port Huron Border Cats (1995–1997) In 1995, Cameron was named as the head coach of the Detroit Falcons of the Colonial Hockey League. In his first season with the club, the Falcons went 33–32–9, finishing in third place in the East Division. In the first round of the playoffs, the Falcons upset the West Division winning Muskegon Fury in five games, however, Detroit lost in five games against the Flint Generals.
In 1996, the Falcons relocated and became the Port Huron Border Cats to start the 1996–97 season. The Border Cats record improved to 38–31–5, which placed them once again in third place in the East Division. In the playoffs, Port Huron lost in five games to the Brantford Smoke in the first round.