When Jon Cooper is asked what he does for a living, his answer is similar to what a Fortune 500 chief executive might say.

“A lot of times I say I’m a people manager,” Cooper said. “That’s kind of what I do, and a lot of my philosophy is: I manage people.”

There is more to Cooper’s job as the Tampa Bay Lightning’s coach than that, and in less than three seasons with the team, Cooper has evolved into one of the sport’s hottest coaching stars. He was a finalist for the Jack Adams Award in 2013-14, and he has led his club to a second straight 100-point season and a third berth in the Eastern Conference finals, where it will face the Rangers.

Although Cooper, 47, often refers to himself as a hockey coach, he has taken an unusual path compared with many of his 29 N.H.L. counterparts. He went to Hofstra but played only one year of hockey there, concentrating instead on playing lacrosse. He also became a lawyer and worked as a public defender in Michigan before turning to coaching.