A Multitude of Endeavors from an NHL-Level Coach
Assistant Skills Coordinator of the New Jersey Devils Chris Gragnano is well renowned: not just for coaching at the highest level of hockey in the Garden State, but also for the remarkable quality connections he has with some of the best hockey players and staff on the planet.
For example, Gragnano runs Total Hockey Development (THD) at Stamford Twin Rinks in Connecticut. Fairfield County, CT, where Stamford is located, is known to be a mini hotbed for NHL and professional hockey training. Because of this, Gragnano has stepped on the ice with some NHL stars, such as Trevor Zegras, Chris Kreider, Cam Atkinson, Matt Rempe, and Kevin Shattenkirk.
“A lot of us had dreams of playing in the NHL, and that’s not reality for more than 99% of us. To just be part of it and contribute to the development of some of the players and have any sort of involvement in that is an honor,” Gragnano said.
Gragnano’s coaching resume and clientele didn’t build itself in a day, Gragnano’s love for coaching started while he was playing high school hockey at Christian Brothers Academy in New Jersey, where he would help his coach run hockey camps.
Gragnano also played for The American Eagles U16 AAA team in the 2000-2001 season. After graduating from high school in 2002, Gragnano played hockey at Providence College. During his time in college, yet after his stint with the Friars, he played for the Green Mountain Glades in the EJHL.
After his graduation, Gragnano moved to Connecticut to begin his coaching career. He became a coach and program director for the Mid-Fairfield Youth Hockey organization in 2007, and has been with them ever since. Through years of working with them, he was able to build connections with many elite coaches and players. Multiple teams he was involved with qualified for the USA Hockey National Championships.
“Some of the kids that I train now that are playing professionally, I’ve trained since they were, you know, 12, 14 years old, so I’ve known them over long periods of time,” Gragnano said. “I’ve seen kids and players go through all the different phases of their careers, from youth hockey, to prep school, to junior, to college, and then on to pro.”
Along with coaching Mid-Fairfield, Gragnano also was the Hockey Director for the Connecticut Oilers Organization and became an Assistant Coach for their EJHL/EHL team from 2012-2014. In 2015, he founded THD.
Through THD, Gragnano runs camps, clinics, 3v3 sessions, and spring/summer tournament teams. Along with that he trains New England prep school teams for skills sessions to prepare them for their seasons. He does the same for Connecticut NCAA D1 hockey programs Quinnipiac, Sacred Heart, Yale, and UConn.
Over the summer, he also trains the players from Prentiss Human Performance (PHP), which is a gym at Stamford Twin Rinks. PHP is where most of Gragnano’s NHL and PWHL star clients come from as mentioned previously.
Also, he became an advisor and Director of Junior Hockey for MCN Sports Advising from 2014-2015 and the Associate Head Coach for the Fredrick Gunn School from 2015-present.
Along with his coaching and advising roles, Gragnano also has served as a scout in several elite junior leagues, such as the USHL, QMJHL, NAHL, AJHL, and the BCHL. He currently is a Regional Scout for the Chicago Steel (USHL) and the Surrey Eagles (BCHL).
“I think it’s not necessarily about me all the time, but it’s just about these places wanting to find people with experience, knowledge, understanding the path, what it takes to get to that particular level,” said Gragnano. “Am I evaluating a kid from Mid Fairfield that’s able to make the step into prep school or junior hockey, and then as a junior scout, am I evaluating kids that are not quite in that level or in that level that can have an impact on our team? Can we relay that message to college coaches?”
In 2021, Gragnano was onboarded to the New Jersey Devils as an Assistant Skills Coordinator. There, he works closely with Devils Skills Coach Ryan Murphy. In December 2024, the two coaches launched ProFormance Hockey, a video analysis social media account and joint training program between THD and Ryan Murphy Hockey Academy.
An important part of Gragnano’s coaching philosophy is all about finding serious, passionate, and elite hockey players, and building a solid relationship with them. According to his website, he brings his years of experience coaching at all levels, covering all of the important foundational skills to being an elite hockey player. He also has an emphasis on passion for knowledge of the game.
“Some of (coaching at different levels) is very much the same. Some of it can be more technical at the higher levels, because really the big separator is execution,” said Gragnano. “Everybody to some degree at higher levels, regardless of age, can pass, shoot, and can do a lot of things. As you get into especially pro hockey, it’s really small details, little things. some of it is really relative to your position and your role or your identity as a player.”
The most important part of Gragnano philosophy is making his players understand that being a hockey player isn’t the only part of a player’s life, but it is also about being a good person. Last year, Gragnano was involved in the Shoulder Check Showcase, which was sponsored by PHP, and the NHL players from Prentiss played a charity game for the event.
Gragnano led the prep school players onto the ice before the game to do a shootout with hockey Content Creators such as Coach Chippy and Swaggy P from Elev802. This event is held annually in light of mental health awareness, and in honor of the late Hayden Thornson. The 2025 Shoulder Check Showcase took place yesterday on July 24th.
“(Making sure your clientele knows they are kind and resilient) means everything.” said Gragnano. “ It takes nothing to work hard and be a good person, and with that you can go a very long way. The message of the Shoulder Check is important to all players and all human beings.”
Overall, Gragnano’s philosophy is centered around relationships and connection. His coaching style regards establishing all foundational skills to be elite, and shape those players to mold their own playstyle at the next level.
Awesome article Alex! Great quotes from Coach Granano. Cool to hear what he’s doing compared to others. THD is something I’ve heard of and I’m not a hockey guy.