Detroit Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill will be making a repeat appearance at the World Championship, but this time it will be as an assistant.
USA Hockey named Blashill as part of head coach David Quinn’s staff at the May 13-29 event in Tampere and Helsinki, Finland. Blashill was head coach of the men’s team in 2017, 2018 and 2019, winning bronze in 2018. Blashill coached the U.S. to a 19-7 mark, and his 19 wins are the most career victories for a head coach of the U.S. Men’s National Team in the IIHF Men’s World Championship.
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The Wings were eliminated from the playoff race for a sixth straight year April 9, and play their season finale April 29 at the New Jersey Devils.
Don Granato, brother of former Wings assistant Tony Granato, and Mike Hastings are the other assistants.
The staff was assembled by former Wings assistant general manager Ryan Martin, who is GM of the 2022 national team.
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“We’re extremely fortunate to have the vast experience this group of coaches brings to the table,” Martin said in a release. “They all have been involved in international tournaments previously and we’re really happy overall with the entire staff we have in place to support our team in the upcoming world championship.”
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames. Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter. Her book, The Big 50: The Detroit Red Wings is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.