Craig Coxe fought 42 times in the NHL, went toe to toe with Bob Probert and scored a goal that no San Jose Sharks player can ever take from him. His last NHL season was 1991-92, but he never really left the rink. He just ended up in a role that fans rarely see.
Where is Craig Coxe now?
Craig Coxe is the rink manager at the City of Cheboygan Ice Rink Pavilion in northern Michigan, and the city’s rink website listed him in that role in September 2026. He has run the city-owned arena since before the 2011-12 season, and he told The Province in December 2022 that he was its only full-time employee, which meant sharpening skates, driving the ice resurfacer and doing the scheduling. “In the winter I can be here seven days a week,” he said.
| Craig Coxe: then and now | |
|---|---|
| Known for | Enforcer, 42 NHL fights, first goal in Sharks history |
| Position | Forward, shoots left |
| Born | 21 January 1964, Chula Vista, California |
| Drafted | 1982, fourth round, 66th overall, Detroit Red Wings |
| NHL career | 8 seasons, 235 games, Vancouver, Calgary, St. Louis and San Jose |
| Last pro season | 1999-2000, San Antonio Iguanas, CHL |
| Current role | Rink manager, City of Cheboygan Ice Rink Pavilion, as of September 2026 |
| Coaching | Cheboygan High School head coach for 12 seasons, stepped down in 2023 |
He came to Michigan more than 20 years ago to coach in a professional league that never got off the ground. He then ran the rink in Petoskey before the city of Cheboygan took over its own arena and needed both a rink manager and a high school coach at the same time. Coxe applied for both jobs and got them. Working for the city, he told The Province, gave him health insurance and a pension after 20 years of moving around as a player and coach.
Does Craig Coxe still coach?
No. Craig Coxe stepped down as head coach of Cheboygan High School in March 2023 after 12 seasons, the St. Ignace News reported. His first team won a regional championship, and his last went 9-16 and lost in double overtime in the first round of the playoffs. Two of his former players, who had been his assistants, were expected to take over the program.
He said at the time that he planned to concentrate on running the rink and did not rule out coaching again. Before Cheboygan he had coached in the minor pro Central Hockey League with San Antonio, Huntsville and El Paso. In El Paso the owner left town, and Coxe went a long stretch without being paid while the team finished the season with ten skaters and still won a couple of games.
Craig Coxe vs Bob Probert: the 1985 fight
The fight most fans search for is Craig Coxe against Bob Probert on 11 November 1985, when Coxe was with Vancouver and Probert with Detroit. The Province described it as a 40-second, toe-to-toe slugfest that ranks third in a list of the 50 best fights of all time. The two had already fought once in junior hockey, and Coxe said he barely slept during his pre-game nap because he expected it to happen again. Our full profile of Bob Probert covers the other side of that rivalry.
Craig Coxe’s fights: 42 in the NHL
Craig Coxe fought 42 times in the NHL, according to The Province, with a career high of 18 fights for the 1987-88 Canucks. His list of opponents included Dave Brown, Tim Hunter, Jeff Beukeboom, Joey Kocur and John Kordic. Going after the biggest names was the only way to get established as a fighter, he said, and the alternative was to quit and join his family’s construction business. He also told The Province that intimidation will always be part of hockey, but that a modern bench has no room for a player who is only there to fight, because teams roll three or four lines and every player has to keep up with the speed.
Craig Coxe’s NHL stats and the first goal in Sharks history
| Season | Team | GP | G | A | P | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984-85 | Vancouver | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 49 |
| 1985-86 | Vancouver | 57 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 176 |
| 1986-87 | Vancouver | 15 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 31 |
| 1987-88 | Vancouver | 64 | 5 | 12 | 17 | 186 |
| 1987-88 | Calgary | 7 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 32 |
| 1988-89 | St. Louis | 41 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 127 |
| 1989-90 | Vancouver | 25 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 66 |
| 1990-91 | Vancouver | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 |
| 1991-92 | San Jose | 10 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 19 |
| Total | 235 | 14 | 31 | 45 | 713 |
Stats are from Hockey-Reference. Detroit drafted Coxe in 1982 but never signed him, and he joined Vancouver as a free agent in 1984.
One of his 14 goals is a piece of franchise history. On 4 October 1991, in the first game the San Jose Sharks ever played, Coxe scored their first goal at 4:09 of the third period in Vancouver, against the team he had played for the season before. The box score credits the assists to Mark Pavelich and Neil Wilkinson. The Canucks won 4-3.
Craig Coxe’s 713 penalty minutes add up to 11 hours and 53 minutes in the box, the length of almost 12 full NHL games.
The channels for every Canucks and Sharks game are in our guides to how to watch the Vancouver Canucks and how to watch the San Jose Sharks.
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