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Jason Smith, Riley Armstrong Named Assistant Coaches For Lehigh Valley Phantoms

By Jacob Modugno

PHILADELPHIA - FEBRUARY 06: Jason Smith #21 of the Philadelphia Flyers skates against the Washington Capitals on February 6, 2008 at Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Caps defeated the Flyers 4-3. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA - FEBRUARY 06: Jason Smith #21 of the Philadelphia Flyers skates against the Washington Capitals on February 6, 2008 at Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Caps defeated the Flyers 4-3. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) /
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The Philadelphia Flyers announced the promotions and hiring of ten different employees with the organization on Monday evening, including the hiring of two assistant coaches for the club’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.

Jason Smith and Riley Armstrong will join newly appointed head coach Ian Laperriere in his first year behind the Phantoms’ bench in Allentown for the 2021-22 season.

Smith is a former NHL defenseman who played in over 1,000 NHL games. He served as captain of the Flyers during his lone season in Philadelphia in 2007-08, when they reached the Eastern Conference Final.

He joins the Phantoms after a two-year stint as an associate coach of the Prince George Cougars of the Western Hockey League. Smith also served as head coach of the WHL’s Kelowna Rockets from 2016-17 until early in the 2018-19 season.

Smith brings some NHL experience as an assistant as well. He coached under Paul McLean and later Dave Cameron for the Ottawa Senators during the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons. Prior to coaching, Smith was a scouting and development consultant for the Senators.

Armstrong was previously the head coach of the ECHL’s Maine Mariners, who are owned by the Flyers’ parent company, Comcast Spectacor. Armstrong led the Mariners to a 69-58-7 record in 134 games over his two seasons as head coach after being named to the position in 2018 ahead of the team’s inaugural 2018-19 season.

Armstrong was promoted as the Mariners’ assistant general manager before the 2019-20 season, ranking right behind Flyers legend and Mariners general manager Daniel Brière to help oversee the Portland-based franchise.

Before joining the Mariners, Armstrong was previously an assistant coach for the ECHL’s Wheeling Nailers from 2016 to 2018 after retiring from a 12-year professional playing career, which included two NHL appearances with the San Jose Sharks during the 2008-09 season. He also played professionally in the AHL, ECHL, and in Europe, making stops in Germany, Russia, Sweden, and Finland during his career.

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