NHL coaches with more losses than wins: Who holds the record for most defeats?

Behind every bench of the National Hockey League sits a record shaped not only by strategy, but by timing, roster cycles and the often-thin line between patience and pressure within an organization.

League history shows that coaching longevity does not always align with success, as some tenures unfolded during rebuilds, ownership changes or prolonged periods of transition rather than contention.

Those careers leave behind numbers that tell a more complex story, where losses gradually outweigh wins and force a deeper look at context, opportunity and how coaching legacies are ultimately defined.

Which coach has more losses in the NHL?

In the long history of the league, coaching records are usually celebrated for wins and championships, but one figure stands apart for a very different milestone. Paul Maurice holds the NHL record for the most career losses by a head coach with a total of 767 until December 2025.

Paul Maurice (Source: Leila Devlin/Getty Images)

His coaching journey began in the mid-1990s with the Hartford Whalers and later included stints with the Carolina Hurricanes, Toronto Maple Leafs, Winnipeg Jets and, more recently, the Florida Panthers.

Over the course of an extraordinarily long career, he has accumulated so many losses that his wins—more than 800—are no longer what stand out most, making him the coach with the most defeats in league history, even as he also ranks among those with a significant number of victories.

That duality highlights how context matters in NHL coaching records. His tenure across different eras and team contexts, from rebuilding clubs to playoff contenders, has produced a complex legacy: one where perseverance on the NHL sidelines has translated into both historical milestones and daunting numbers.

Top 3 NHL coaches with more losses than wins

• Milt Schmidt | 394 losses, 250 wins

If loyalty had a name in Massachusetts, it would be Milt Schmidt. However, “Mr. Bruin’s” transition from the ice to the bench was an exercise in pure stoicism. He wasn’t a poor tactician; he was simply the captain who tried to keep two ships afloat during a perfect storm: a rebuilding Bruins squad in the 1950s and, later, the disastrous birth of the Washington Capitals in the 70s.

His negative balance—ending his career 144 games below the .500 mark—is largely a byproduct of his sense of duty. While others might have jumped ship, he accepted the daunting task of coaching the Capitals during their 1974-75 inaugural season, arguably the worst year in the history of professional sports. His legacy isn’t measured in points percentage, but in the dignity with which he wore the crest while the scoreboard turned its back on him.

• Ebie Goodfellow | 91 losses, 30 wins

The story of Ebenezer “Ebie” Goodfellow serves as a cautionary tale: a legendary playing career does not always translate to success with a clipboard. After a Hall of Fame run as a defenseman in Detroit, he landed with the Chicago Blackhawks in the early 1950s—a franchise that, at the time, seemed to have forgotten the recipe for victory.

His tenure behind the bench was brief but bruising. In just two seasons, the team sank into irrelevance, winning barely a third of their contests under his guidance. He became the face of a frustrated era at the Chicago Stadium, proving that even the charisma and hockey IQ of a superstar player aren’t always enough to fix a roster lacking direction and depth.