May 22, 2025
Ferris State Hall-of-Famer Jeff Blashill named head coach of NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks
Jeff Blashill, a Ferris State University Hall of Famer for his play as a hockey goaltender, has been named the new head coach of the National Hockey League's Chicago Blackhawks.
Blashill, 51, takes over the Blackhawks' reins following three seasons as an assistant coach for the Tampa Bay Lightning. It’s his second time as head coach for one of the league’s storied “Original Six” franchises. He was head coach for the Detroit Red Wings from 2015 to 2022.
Originally from Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, he played goaltender at Ferris State and compiled a 27-36-5 record with two shutouts over 78 games during his four-year career.
Blashill was the Bulldogs' Rookie of the Year in 1994-95, earned a spot on the CCHA All-Academic Team in 1996-97 and won Ferris State's President's Award in three consecutive years for having the highest grade-point average.
He was elected to the university’s Hall of Fame in 2020.
Blashill began his coaching career at Ferris State under legendary former Bulldog head coach Bob Daniels, then was an assistant coach at Miami University in Ohio from 2002 to 2008.
Blashill has been on Jon Cooper's staff in Tampa Bay for the past three seasons, working largely with the defense and running the penalty kill for the Lightning. The team compiled a record of 138-86-22, qualifying for the Stanley Cup playoffs during his tenure.
Blashill served as the head coach of the Detroit Red Wings for seven seasons and compiled a record of 204-261-72 in 537 regular season games along with one postseason stint.
Prior to taking over in Detroit, Blashill served three seasons as the head coach of the Red Wings' American Hockey League affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins, where he advanced to the playoffs in all three seasons and won the first Calder Cup championship in franchise history.
He was awarded the Louis A. R. Pieri Memorial Award as the AHL's most outstanding coach in 2013-14 after guiding the Griffins to a 46-win season, and he compiled an overall mark of 134-71-23.
Blashill also served as an assistant coach with the Red Wings for the 2011-12 season, was the head coach of Western Michigan University in 2010-11 and was the main bench boss for the Indiana Ice of the United States Hockey League for the 2008-09 and 2009-10 seasons, winning a Clark Cup championship with the Ice in his first season.
On the international stage, Blashill served as head coach of Team USA three times at the IIHF World Championships in 2017, 2018, and 2019, guiding the team to a bronze medal in 2018. He also worked as an assistant coach at both the 2022 IIHF World Championship as well as the 2009 World Junior Championship.
Blashill's brother, Tim Blashill, serves as Ferris State’s assistant athletics director for Facilities and Event Operations and is the head coach of the Big Rapids High School hockey team.