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In the nine seasons since he took over the helm of Miami University's hockey program, head coach Enrico Blasi has helped the program achieve what many thought could never be done in a small town in Southwest Ohio. Fortunately for Miami, Blasi has never been one to worry about the perceptions of others, and using a `team-first' mantra, has elevated the RedHawks into a nationally prominent program. Eleven times Miami has achieved the No. 1 national ranking, an honor no other MU team has ever earned.
"It is our goal to win a national title," said Blasi. "We have the support of our institution and the community, and we feel like the future of Miami hockey has never been brighter."
Blasi's devotion to and belief in Miami hockey has turned all involved with the program into a family. A 1994 graduate of Miami University, Blasi took over the reins at his alma mater in 1999 as the youngest head coach in Division I college hockey, and has worked tirelessly ever since to make that family the strongest unit it can be. With the 2006 National Coach of the Year Award, three Central Collegiate Hockey Association Coach of the Year Awards and four trips to the NCAA Tournament under his belt in just nine seasons with the Red and White, Blasi's ideals of family and togetherness are paying big dividends in Oxford.
"I am committed to this program and the people involved with it," says Blasi. "We are all going to achieve more when we work together and that is evidenced by the team and individual success we have had in the last few years. We are in the business to not only develop quality hockey players but to develop student-athletes with great character."
It is Blasi's devotion to his alma mater, and his ability to motivate and get the most out of his players, both athletically and academically, that prompted Miami University Director of Athletics Brad Bates to ink Blasi to a contract extension in September 2007 through the 2016-17 season.
Dr. David Hodge, President of Miami University, saluted Blasi's loyalty to MU, saying, "We are excited that Coach Blasi has made such a long-term commitment to Miami University. He and his ice hockey teams have contributed greatly to our student body and fans for the past eight seasons, and we look forward to the exciting moments that they are certain to generate over the coming years. Coach Blasi takes great pride in being a Miamian, and we are equally proud that he has chosen to remain a part of Miami University's family."
Including a record-setting 2007-08 season, his career mark stands at 187-138-28 (134-95-23 in CCHA games).
Blasi's most recent team, the 2007-08 squad, became the winningest squad in the 30-year history of Miami University ice hockey. It compiled an impressive 33-8-1 record, won 21 CCHA games, and finished just a single point behind Michigan for the regular-season championship. The RedHawks played in the CCHA's playoff title game, earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA's Northeast Regional, and won the school's second-ever NCAA playoff game before losing in the regional finals to Boston College in overtime. For 10 weeks, Miami was the nation's top-rated college ice hockey team.
His RedHawks' accomplishments this past season earned Blasi recognition as Cincinnati's Sports Executive of the Year.
In 2006-07, Blasi's RedHawks compiled an impressive 24-14-4 record, including Miami's first-ever victory in NCAA Tournament play. The 2-1 victory over New Hampshire put the RedHawks just one game away from qualifying for the NCAA's 2007 Frozen Four, but Miami was beaten by Boston College, 4-0.
By being named 2006 National Coach of the Year, Blasi joined George Gwozdecky as the only Miami hockey coaches to win the Spencer Penrose Award. Gwozdecky mentored the Red and White for seven seasons and guided the 1992-93 team, of which Blasi was a member, to the first CCHA regular-season title in program history.
Blasi's three CCHA Coach of the Year Awards in just seven seasons put him in very good company also. He is one of only three coaches in league history to win three or more such awards, joining Michigan State's Ron Mason, the winningest coach in college hockey history, who won seven times, and former Western Michigan head coach Bill Wilkinson, who won the award three times. Mason (924), who is now the director of athletics at Michigan State, and Wilkinson (414), have combined to win 1,328 college hockey games.
The 2005-06 season was a culmination of seven years of relentless hard work by Blasi and his staff as the RedHawks posted a 26-9-4 overall record and skated to just the second CCHA regular-season title in program history with a 20-6-2 league mark. But it wasn't the number of wins that meant the most to Blasi, it was the manner in which his team accrued them.
During the 2004-05 season, Blasi became just the second coach in Miami hockey history to reach the 100-win plateau when his RedHawks completed a series sweep of Ferris State with a 5-3 win on Jan. 29, 2005. A 3-1 win over Ferris State on Jan. 27, 2006 cemented Blasi's name in the Miami record books as he surpassed Steve Cady to become Miami's all-time winningest hockey mentor with 122 career victories.
The 2003-04 season was Blasi's most successful at Miami prior to 2005-06. Guiding the RedHawks to their second straight 20-win season with an overall mark of 23-14-4, he earned his second career CCHA Coach of the Year award. A second-place finish in the CCHA helped the Red and White make their first trip to the CCHA Super Six since the 1997-98 season and secured the program's first NCAA Tournament berth since 1997. Only the 1992-93 team--of which Blasi was a member--and the 1996-97 squad had advanced past the CCHA Tournament prior to the 2003-04 team's run to the NCAA Tournament in Colorado Springs, Colo.
The 2002-03 season came just in time for Blasi who, after a sub-par 2001-02 season, turned the team around and led it to its fifth 20-win season with a 21-17-3 mark. The RedHawks finished in a tie for fifth in the conference with a 13-12-3 record. Just seven games into the season, Blasi recorded his 50th career victory with a 7-1 win over Northern Michigan.
Blasi's ascent up the CCHA ranks began eight years ago, in 2000-01, when he was named CCHA Coach of the Year for the first time after leading Miami to a 17-10-1 conference mark. After finishing ninth a year earlier, the RedHawks completed the biggest single-season turnaround in school history by finishing second in the CCHA. This was only the fourth time that Miami had reached the 20-win plateau since joining the CCHA.
His first Coach of the Year award put Blasi in distinguished company as one of only three Miami mentors to earn the honor and the first since Mark Mazzoleni was honored in 1997. One of Blasi's highlights during his second season came when the RedHawks earned USA Today National Team of the Week honors after sweeping No. 9 Western Michigan University, February 2-3. Even though Blasi and the RedHawks had their season cut short in the CCHA playoffs, the 2000-01 campaign showed the Red and White faithful what they had to look forward to in the future.
A 1994 graduate of Miami, Blasi made his debut as a collegiate head coach in 1999-00, guiding the RedHawks to a 13-20-3 overall record and a ninth-place CCHA finish. His 13 wins were the second-highest total among first-year coaches in NCAA Division I hockey. Blasi also was able to return Miami to the CCHA playoffs after a one-year hiatus.
The first Miami hockey alumnus to return to his alma mater as the head coach, Blasi came to Miami after working four years--three as an assistant and one as a graduate assistant--under former Miami mentor George Gwozdecky at the University of Denver.
"As the search went on for a candidate, I came to realize that there was a need to turn to someone with Miami ties," said Joel Maturi, former Miami Athletics Director, at the press conference for Blasi's hiring. "It's truly a pleasure to welcome home a member of Miami's Cradle of Coaches. No one in our applicant pool had such a passion for Miami and its ice hockey program."
While in Denver, Blasi helped the Pioneers to two trips to the NCAA Tournament and three Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) upper-division finishes. His main responsibilities during that time included assisting in the Pioneers' recruiting efforts and video analysis as well as on-ice duties. During the 1998-99 season, Denver posted the NCAA's largest turnaround, improving from an 11-25-2 mark in 1997-98 to 26-13-2 and capturing their league-record 12th postseason playoff championship by defeating then top-ranked North Dakota, 4-3.
Before going to Denver in 1994-95, Blasi spent one season as the assistant coach for the Wexford Raiders junior team.
As a player at Miami from 1990-1994, Blasi was a vital cog in the Red and White's run to their first CCHA title in 1992-93. As the captain of the 1993-94 squad, he finished third on the team in scoring with 28 points on 13 goals and 15 assists. His 123 career points are tied for 18th on Miami's all-time scoring list.
A native of Weston, Ontario, Blasi earned his bachelor's degree in physical education from Miami. Blasi resides in Oxford with his wife, Susan, seven-year-old daughter, Sophia, and four-year-old daughter, Emily
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