J. D. Forrest

Justin David "J.D." Forrest (born April 15, 1981) is an American professional ice hockey coach and former professional defenseman.

J. D. Forrest
Forrest with Oulun Kärpät in 2009
Born	(1981-04-15) April 15, 1981 (age 44) Auburn, New York, U.S.
Height	5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
Weight	180 lb (82 kg; 12 st 12 lb)
Position	Defense
Shot	Left
Played for	SaiPa Lappeenranta Ässät Pori Kärpät Oulu Jokerit Helsinki Kloten Flyers Malmö Redhawks Augsburger Panther
NHL draft	181st overall, 2000 Carolina Hurricanes
Playing career	2004–2014

Playing career

Forrest spent four seasons playing for Boston College, where he was part of the team that won the NCAA Championship in 2001 and earned Hockey East All-Rookie Team honors. In 2003, he was named a Second-Team All-American by the ACHA and served as an alternate captain during his final two seasons before graduating in 2004. Following college, he launched a long professional hockey career that included time in North America and Europe, playing in Finland's Liiga, Switzerland's National League A, and the American Hockey League. He concluded his playing career in 2014 after spending two seasons with the Augsburger Panther in Germany's Deutsche Eishockey Liga.^[1]

Coaching career

After retiring from professional hockey, Forrest began his coaching career as an assistant with the USA Hockey National Team Development Program, where he helped lead the team to a gold medal at the 2015 IIHF Under-18 World Championship. He then spent a season coaching the affiliate team of EC Red Bull Salzburg in Austria. On August 2, 2016, the Pittsburgh Penguins appointed him as an assistant coach for their AHL affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.^[2]

He was promoted to the position of head coach on September 11, 2020.^[3]

On April 28, 2024, the Penguins announced that they would not be extending the contract of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Head Coach J.D. Forrest.^[4] He subsequently joined the Syracuse Crunch as an assistant coach.^[5]

Awards and honors

Award	Year
All-Hockey East Rookie Team	2000–01
All-Hockey East Second Team	2002–03
AHCA East Second-Team All-American	2002–03

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1997–98	US NTDP U18	NAHL		41	2	16	18	20		5	0	1	1	2
1997–98	US NTDP Juniors	USHL		5	2	0	2	17		—	—	—	—	—
1998–99	US NTDP U18	NAHL		2	1	0	1	4		—	—	—	—	—
1998–99	US NTDP Juniors	USHL		48	5	21	26	34		—	—	—	—	—
1999–2000	US NTDP U18	NAHL		49	6	28	34	46		3	0	0	0	6
1999–2000	US NTDP Juniors	USHL		8	0	0	0	2		—	—	—	—	—
2000–01	Boston College	HE		38	6	16	22	40		—	—	—	—	—
2001–02	Boston College	HE		35	8	19	27	28		—	—	—	—	—
2002–03	Boston College	HE		34	6	25	31	28		—	—	—	—	—
2003–04	Boston College	HE		37	4	13	17	26		—	—	—	—	—
2004–05	SaiPa	SM-liiga		53	7	12	19	44		—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	Ässät	SM-liiga		43	6	5	11	69		14	0	4	4	14
2007–08	Albany River Rats	AHL		19	3	7	10	16		—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Florida Everblades	ECHL		12	1	7	8	6		—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Elmira Jackals	ECHL		2	0	0	0	2		—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Worcester Sharks	AHL		16	1	4	5	10		—	—	—	—	—
2008–09	Kärpät	SM-liiga		52	5	28	33	60		15	3	3	6	10
2009–10	Kärpät	SM-liiga		17	2	5	7	20		—	—	—	—	—
2009–10	Kloten Flyers	NLA		30	7	20	27	18		10	0	5	5	2
2010–11	Kärpät	SM-liiga		41	3	20	23	22		7	0	1	1	4
2011–12	Malmö Redhawks	Allsv		50	4	13	17	32		1	0	0	0	0
2012–13	Augsburger Panther	DEL		32	2	13	15	24		2	0	0	0	2
2013–14	Augsburger Panther	DEL		51	4	18	22	20		—	—	—	—	—
SM-liiga totals				206	23	70	93	215		36	3	8	11	28

International

Year	Team	Event		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1999	United States	WJC18		6	1	2	3	10
2001	United States	WJC		7	1	1	2	8
Junior totals				13	2	3	5	18