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Prince Albert product Todd Nelson has a new job in the hockey world.

The Edmonton Oilers announced Thursday that Nelson has been named the head coach of their new American Hockey League affiliate, the Oklahoma City Barons.

Nelson, a former Prince Albert Raider, spent the past two seasons in the NHL as an assistant coach with the Atlanta Thrashers, who fired head coach John Anderson and his staff this spring.

“Todd has demonstrated a winning record and attitude throughout his professional career, and we know that he will be a very valuable asset mentoring and developing our players in Oklahoma City,” Oilers general manager Steve Tambellini said in a news release.

“He has a wealth of experience, both as a player and a coach in the NHL and AHL, which will be an added benefit to our organization. We are extremely excited to have him as our coach.”

Before his Atlanta stint, Nelson was an AHL assistant coach with the Chicago Wolves from 2006 through 2008. In his final season with the Wolves, they won the Calder Cup, posted a regular-season record of 46-25-9, and broke or matched 30 franchise records.

Nelson’s most recent head-coaching stint was a three-year run (2003-2006) with the Muskegon Fury of the United Hockey League. The Fury won the Colonial Cup in each of his first two seasons with Muskegon.

Nelson, with a 149-58-25 record, is the winningest coach in Fury franchise history.

His assistant coach in Oklahoma City will be Gerry Fleming, who had the same job for the past two seasons with the Springfield Falcons, formerly the Oilers’ AHL farm team.

Rob Daum, who was the head coach in Springfield, was fired last month. He was an assistant with the WHL Raiders two decades ago when Nelson played with Prince Albert.

The Pittsburgh Penguins selected Nelson in the fourth round of the 1989 NHL entry draft, after his four-year junior career with his hometown Raiders. He went on to play 12 years of minor-pro hockey in North America and a couple of seasons in Europe.

This spring, Nelson had been short-listed for a WHL post as head coach of the Edmonton Oil Kings, who gave that job to Derek Laxdal.

Nelson, 41, was among three appointments the NHL Oilers announced Thursday. Kelly Buchberger and Steve Smith were confirmed as assistant coaches to Tom Renney, the former associate coach who has taken over from Pat Quinn as Edmonton’s head coach.

Buchberger, a former Springfield head coach, has been an assistant with the Oilers for the past two seasons.

Smith has rejoined the Edmonton organization that drafted him in 1981. He spent the past two years as a scout with the Chicago Blackhawks, the reigning Stanley Cup champions.

Vancouver Giants coach Don Hay had been mentioned as a candidate to join Renney behind the Edmonton bench. The longtime friends worked together with the Kamloops Blazers.

Hay, however, has opted to return to Vancouver for a seventh season.

“In the end, I think his dream is to be a head coach in the NHL,” Giants owner Ron Toigo told the Vancouver Province.

“I think he listened to this longer than he normally does to these types of offers, because of Tom.”

Renney joked Wednesday that he might never be able to lure Hay away from the Giants.

“I think Don has a lifetime contract there,” he said.

jmacneil@paherald.sk.ca