High school Gendron's first coaching position was as assistant coach to Albie Brodeur for two seasons, from 1979 to 1981 at his alma mater,
Berlin High School in
Berlin, New Hampshire. In 1981, he accepted his first head coaching position at
Bellows Free Academy, in
St. Albans, Vermont. During his nine years at BFA, Gendron led the Bobwhites to four state championships (1982, 1983, 1987 and 1988) and was twice named Vermont coach of the year. While at BFA he coached future
NHL All-Star
John LeClair, coached
baseball and
football, and taught history.
University of Maine (1990–93) Gendron's entered the collegiate coaching ranks in 1990 as an assistant coach for
Shawn Walsh at the
University of Maine men's hockey team. In his third season as an assistant at Maine, Gendron helped guide the Black Bears to the
1993 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Championship and an overall record of 42–1–2. During his two seasons as assistant coach at Maine, Gendron coached two
Hobey Baker Award winners,
Scott Pellerin in 1991–92 and
Paul Kariya in 1992–93.
New Jersey Devils/Albany River Rats In the summer of 1993 the
New Jersey Devils hired Gendron to serve as a technological specialist for the 1993–94 season. The following season,
1994–95, Gendron was promoted to assistant coach serving under head coach
Jacques Lemaire and alongside fellow assistant coach
Larry Robinson. That season the Devils would go on to defeat the
Detroit Red Wings to capture the team's first
Stanley Cup championship. For the 1996–97 season, Gendron was named assistant coach of the
New Jersey Devils AHL affiliate
Albany River Rats, a position he remained in until the 1999–00 season. During the 2000–01 and 2001–02 season Gendron served as a scout for the Devils. Gendron became head coach of the Albany River Rats for the 2002–03 season. He was replaced during the 2003–04 AHL season by
Robbie Ftorek. During Gendron's tenure as a member of the New Jersey Devils organization the team won three Stanley Cup Championships
1995,
2000,
2003 and finished runner-up in
2001. His name was engraved on the
Stanley Cup in 1995 and 2000.
Indiana Ice On June 17, 2004, the
USHL's Indiana Ice named Gendron head coach.
University of Massachusetts In July 2005 Gendron was hired by Don "Toot" Cahoon to serve as assistant coach for the
University of Massachusetts men's hockey team, a position he held for six seasons. While at UMass, he helped the Minutemen reach the
2007 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament where they eventually lost in the regional final to the
University of Maine. That postseason appearance represented the first NCAA Division 1 tournament appearance for the Minutemen since the program rejoined Division 1 for the 1993–94 season.
Yale University In 2011, Gendron was named associate head coach at
Yale University, a position he would remain in for two seasons. In his second season as an associate head coach of the Bulldogs, Gendron helped guide the team to the first national championship in school history in
2013.
University of Maine (2013–2021) On May 17, 2013, Gendron was named the fifth head coach in the history of the
University of Maine men's hockey.
International Gendron served as an assistant coach for 1993, 2001, and 2002 World Junior Championships for Team USA and also has worked several U.S. Select 16 and 17 teams. == Author ==