The major news Tuesday for the Chicago Blackhawks revolved around the introduction of head coach Jeff Blashill, but the addition of Michael Peca cannot be overlooked as well.
During his first press conference in Chicago, Blashill said the team had brought in Michael Peca, 51, to serve as an assistant coach.
Peca, a former two-time Selke Trophy winner, has spent the last two seasons serving as an assistant coach with the New York Rangers. Now he comes to Chicago in a position to help mold some of the best young forwards in the game.
Chicago Blackhawks assistant coach Michael Peca could have a major impact on the team.
Peca and the Rangers might not have had much success on the ice the past few seasons, but they did improve dramatically in the faceoff dot with Peca.
The Rangers had long struggled in the faceoff dot up until Peca's arrival in New York. In his two seasons with the team they were 52.9 percent in the faceoff dot, the fifth best in the league per the New York Post.
Peca can bring that teaching ability with him to a Blackhawks team in desperate need of help in the dot.
Connor Bedard was 38.3 percent in the faceoff dot and Frank Nazar was at 44.6 percent. Chicago relied heavily on Jason Dickinson and Nick Foligno in the faceoff dot last season.
Dickinson and Foligno accounted for over a third of the team's faceoff wins in 2024-25, and there is little doubt Peca will be working alongside Bedard, Nazar and the rest of the centers to improve their technique.
Peca's NHL career saw him play in 864 games over the course of 14 seasons. The Selke Trophy winner played for six different teams including the Buffalo Sabres, New York Islanders, Columbus Blue Jackets, Vancouver Canucks, Edmonton Oilers and Toronto Maple Leafs.
Peca captained the Buffalo Sabres to the Stanley Cup Final in 1999 and returned to the final once more in 2006 with the Edmonton Oilers.
