Former University of Lethbridge Pronghorns men's hockey coaches are reuniting in the National Hockey League.

Bill Peters, a Horns coach from 2002 to 2005, will serve as an assistant coach with Mike Babcock after the Detroit Red Wings announced his appointment on Friday. Babcock coached the Horns in 1994, guiding the team to its only University Cup title.

The two were linked previously as Peters was Babcock's assistant coach with the Western Hockey League's Spokane Chiefs. Peters joined Babcock's Spokane staff during the 1996-97 season and returned to the same post in 1999 – Babcock's final season with the Chiefs – where he stayed until joining the Horns.

Peters spent three seasons with the Horns from 2002 through 2005, guiding the team to a 17-59-8 record and one post-season appearance. In 2005 he returned to the Chiefs, eventually leading Spokane to a Memorial Cup title in 2008, the same season that Babcock and the Red Wings won the Stanley Cup.

Most recently, Peters was the head coach with the Rockford IceHogs in the American Hockey League. He was the longest tenured coach in IceHogs history, spending three seasons behind the bench while compiling a record of 122-97-7-14. The Three Hills, Alta. native guided the Hogs to a winning season during every campaign he coached in Rockford.