Mitchell tabbed NAHL Coach of the Year

Wisconsin Windigo Head Coach John Mitchell was named North American Hockey League’s Coach of the Year after leading his team to the NAHL’s Midwest Division regular season and

the Robertson Cup semifinals. 

Mitchell was awarded the title by his peers, as the award is determined by general managers and head coaches throughout the league. 

In his first season as a NAHL head coach, Mitchell led the Windigo to

their best regular season record in franchise history of 41-14-4. 

This was the Windigo’s second regular-season championship during its first three seasons of NAHL competition. Mitchell led Wisconsin past the Anchorage Wolverines in five games in the Midwest Division Finals to put the Windigo into the Robertson Cup semifinals for the first time in the team’s three seasons. They would lose a hard-fought three-game semifinal series to the Lone Star Brahmas.

“It’s an honor and tremendously humbling to go back and look at some of the recipients of this award. There have been some really great coaches in this league who have been recognized and won this award,” said Mitchell after receiving the award. “In the same breath, it’s an honor when your colleagues speak on your behalf like that, it really means a lot. It’s an honor to be sort of the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the face of the organization. Because we did have a really successful year, and we had a lot of things to be proud of. I’m just glad that Wisconsin is getting some recognition for that.”

Mitchell was hired by the Windigo in May 2024, where he came from being the associate head coach of the NAHL’s St. Cloud Norsemen during the 2023-24 season.

He also coached in the NA3HL as assistant and head coach of the Milwaukee Power in the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons.

Mitchell is also a former D1 hockey player, where he played for the Wisconsin Badgers, and he won a national championship in 2006. 

Mitchell and the Wisconsin Windigo recently relocated to Brookfield for the 2025-26 season, after a sale to the District 5 Sports Group Hockey Club, LLC. The team will play its home games at the Ponds of Brookfield.