 Ruskowski would become the ECHL's first coach to be promoted to a higher level when he became the coach of the expansion Houston Aeros of the IHL in June 1994.All four Chill coaches (Ruskowski, Moe Mantha Jr., Brian McCutcheon and Don Granato) would advance through the ranks with two (McCutcheon, Buffalo Sabres and Granato, St. Louis Blues) becoming NHL assistant coaches.McCutcheon would be named the 1997 ECHL Coach of the Year.