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2025 AHL Hall of Fame Inductee Spent Parts of Three Seasons as Goaltending Coach with OHL’s Windsor Spitfires
Detroit Red Wings Executive Vice President and General Manager Steve Yzerman today announced that the team has hired Michael Leighton as Goaltending Coach.
Leighton, 44, joins the organization after spending parts of three seasons as Goaltending Coach of the Ontario Hockey League’s Windsor Spitfires from 2021-24. During his tenure with the Spitfires, Leighton helped the team win back-to-back Western Conference regular-season titles in 2021-22 and 2022-23. The Spitfires also clinched a berth in the 2022 OHL Championship Series, falling to the Hamilton Bulldogs in seven games. Leighton began his coaching career after playing 18 seasons of professional hockey from 2001-19.
Originally selected by the Chicago Blackhawks in the sixth round (165th overall) of the 1999 NHL Entry Draft, Leighton posted a 37-43-10-4 record with a 2.98 goals-against average, a 0.900 save percentage and four shutouts in 110 regular-season appearances with the Blackhawks, Nashville Predators, Philadelphia Flyers and Carolina Hurricanes. Leighton became the first goaltender in Blackhawks history to earn a shutout in his NHL debut, stopping all 31 shots he faced in a goalless tie on Jan. 8, 2003 vs. Phoenix. He also logged an 8-4 record with a 2.54 goals-against average, a 0.913 save percentage and three shutouts in 16 postseason contests, helping the Flyers reach the 2010 Stanley Cup Final. Leighton tied an NHL record for most shutouts in a single Stanley Cup Playoff series, collecting three shutouts in five starts during the 2010 Eastern Conference Final vs. Montréal.
Leighton also played parts of 15 seasons in the American Hockey League, earning induction into the AHL Hall of Fame in 2025. In total, Leighton compiled a 250-186-55 record with a 2.38 goals-against average, a 0.916 save percentage and 50 shutouts in 507 AHL games with the Norfolk Admirals, Rochester Americans, Portland Pirates, Philadelphia/Adirondack Phantoms, Albany River Rats, Rockford IceHogs, Charlotte Checkers, Syracuse Crunch, Chicago Wolves, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, Ontario Reign and Utica Comets. His 50 shutouts are the most by a goaltender in AHL history, surpassing the mark held by Johnny Bower (45). Leighton also owned a 13-12 record with a 1.67 goals-against average, a 0.946 save percentage and five shutouts in 28 Calder Cup Playoff games. He holds the AHL record for most saves in a single game, stopping 98-of-101 shots in a five-overtime contest with Albany on April 24, 2008 vs. Philadelphia.
Leighton played in five AHL All-Star Classics (2002, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2017) and was named the recipient of the 2007-08 Aldege “Baz” Bastien Memorial Award as the league’s most outstanding goaltender after finishing with a 28-25-4 record with a 2.10 goals-against average, a 0.931 save percentage and seven shutouts in 58 appearances with Albany. Leighton also earned a place on the AHL’s Rookie Team in 2001-02 after logging a 27-16-8 record with a 2.14 goals-against average, a 0.920 save percentage and six shutouts in 52 games with Norfolk. Additionally, Leighton spent the 2013-14 campaign with Donbass Donetsk in the Kontinental Hockey League, showing a 20-16-6 record with a 1.74 goals-against average, a 0.933 save percentage and six shutouts in 42 regular-season games. He also tallied a 3-4 record with a 2.57 goals-against average and a 0.908 save percentage in eight Gagarin Cup Playoff games.
A native of Petrolia, Ont., Leighton played three seasons with the Spitfires prior to turning professional, posting a 53-47-9 record with a 3.30 goals-against average, a 0.903 save percentage and three shutouts in 124 OHL games from 1998-01. Leighton also made 46 appearances with the Petrolia Jets in the Western Ontario Hockey League from 1996-98.
