Glads Announce Predators As NHL Partner; Derek Nesbitt Named Head Coach

Atlanta Gladiators majority owner Alex Campbell announced today that starting in the 2023-24 season, the Atlanta Gladiators will now serve as the ECHL affiliate for the National Hockey League’s Nashville Predators. The Gladiators were affiliated with the Arizona Coyotes this past season.

In addition to the exciting affiliation announcement, Gladiators majority owner, Alex Campbell also announced that Gladiators legend Derek Nesbitt has been named the team’s sixth head coach in history. Jeff Pyle has been promoted to Director of Hockey Operations for the club.

“We are very proud to bring in the Nashville Predators and Milwaukee Admirals as affiliation partners. With the Predators being the closest NHL team to Gwinnett, we wanted to bring our fans closer than ever to our affiliation partner.” Campbell, said

“We are excited to welcome a strong organization in the Atlanta Gladiators to the Predators family as our new ECHL affiliate, extending our developmental pipeline through our longstanding AHL affiliate in Milwaukee,” Predators Assistant General Manager/Director of Hockey Operations Brian Poile said.

“We’re so excited to have Mr. Gladiator himself, Derek Nesbitt, as the next head coach of our storied franchise. When you think of the Atlanta Gladiators, you think of Derek Nesbitt, and his accomplishments while wearing a Gladiators jersey. We couldn’t be more excited to have Derek at the helm beginning next season. With that said, we would like to sincerely thank Jeff Pyle, for not only setting an example of excellence on the ice, but also your ongoing commitment to the Gladiators in the past, present, and future. We are proud to have promoted him to become our next Director of Hockey Operations” said Campbell.

Nesbitt, 41, takes over as head coach of the club after serving as an assistant coach for the Gladiators this past season. Prior to being an assistant with Atlanta, Nesbitt served as the team’s captain for five seasons, including playing in 512 total games with the franchise, across eight total seasons. Nesbitt is the all-time leader in games played (512), goals (166), assists (258), and points (424) for the Atlanta Gladiators.

The Gladiators 2023-24 campaign begins with a highly contested matchup against their interstate rivals, the Savannah Ghost Pirates on October 21st, at 7pm at Gas South Arena. The full schedule can be found here.