Jeff Blashill Named Head Coach of Team U.S.A. at World Hockey Championship

The Detroit Red Wings season may be over, but that doesn’t mean the work is going to stop for Jeff Blashill. For the third year in a row, the Wings’ bench boss has been named head coach for Team U.S.A. at the World Hockey Championship.

Blashill’s found varying levels of success at the World Championships, culminating in a bronze medal finish last season. He’s got 14 wins under his belt of the 18 games he’s coached. He’ll also be joined by his colleague in Detroit, Dan Bylsma, as an assistant coach.

The World Championships are always a bit of a mixed bag because the rosters rely so heavily on which NHL teams are left in the postseason. As far as the Red Wings are concerned, Dylan Larkin is a lock to play for the Americans, after crediting last year’s tournament with strengthening his working relationship with his head coach. Danny DeKeyser has also held a spot on the blue line for the last couple of years, so I’d expect him to don a Team U.S.A. jersey again as well.

They’ll likely be joined by the likes of Patrick Kane, Vincent Trochek, and more as teams are eliminated from the playoffs. The tournament is set to take place between May 10th and 26th in Kosice and Bratislava, Slovakia. The rosters should be announced in the coming weeks.