Topher Scott enters his first season as an assistant coach with the Raiders for the 2024-25 season. Scott brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to Raiders, previously at the University of Michigan where he was the Director of Hockey Operations. During the 2022-23 season, the Wolverines won the Big 10 Championship and also appeared in the Frozen Four losing to the eventual National Champion, Quinnipiac University.
A former hockey player and coach at Cornell University, Scott spent the last seven years working with teams at all levels of hockey on leadership and building culture. As the founder of The Hockey Think Tank, he has collaborated with top coaches and leaders in the game while providing motivational speaking and hockey education services to programs all over North America.
In addition to creating a top hockey development podcast called the "Hockey Think Tank Podcast," Scott has been asked to speak on four occasions at the NCAA Hockey Coaches convention in Naples, Florida on leadership and building culture.
A native of Buffalo Grove, Illinois, Scott played college hockey at Cornell from 2004-08. While at Cornell, he was a two-year captain and member of the 100-point club while helping lead the team to an ECAC Championship in 2005. As a senior, Scott was named a finalist for the Lowes Senior CLASS Award and was a nominee for both the NCAA Hockey Humanitarian Award and Derek Hines Unsung Hero Award.
After Cornell, Scott played professionally for two seasons with stops at Elmira (ECHL), Texas (CHL), and Rio Grande Valley (CHL). During his time in Rio Grande Valley, he won both the Fan Favorite and Unsung Hero awards.
Scott took his first coaching job in 2010 at Miami University (Ohio) while earning his master's degree in sports performance and behavior. During his year at Miami, the Redhawks defeated Western Michigan to win the CCHA Championship. Scott then returned to his alma mater as an assistant coach with the Big Red for five seasons (2011-16). Cornell won two Ivy League championships during that time and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
