Chicago Blackhawks had eyes on another top college coach next to David Carle

There have been more reports on the Chicago Blackhawks misses in the head coaching cycle this offseason than traction on who the front office has spoken to. Five coaching vacancies across the NHL have been filled, with Chicago’s opening being one of the four left in this cycle. This is the biggest hire that the organization has had to make in quite some time, with the rebuild looking to take a sharp turn for the better this fall.

The team finished this past season strong, with a bunch a young faces make their way up to the NHL level and signing their entry-level deals toward the end of the campaign. The front office is fully aware that they need to being in a guy that can command the dressing room while establishing a winning culture right away. While the Blackhawks haven’t been able to land some of the bigger names on the market so far, there are still some solid options available to them.

A recent report shows that Chicago attempted at making a swing at another big name collegiate head coach next to their efforts at bringing in David Carle.  

The Chicago Blackhawks were interested in Adam Nightingale

Per insider Elliotte Freidman, the Blackhawks reportedly had interest in Michigan State head coach, Adam Nightingale earlier on this offseason. The report later detailed the fact that Nightingale doesn’t have any intention of leaving the college ranks right now, similar to what happened with Carle at Denver University.

Nightingale has been the head coach at Michigan State for the past three seasons, and has posted a 65-39-9 record in his time leading the program so far. He was the Big Ten Coach of the Year in 2024, and has led the Spartans to the NCAA tournament in each of the last two seasons. Nightingale has done a nice job taking over the MSU program and has turned it around in a strong way, and their place at the top of the Big Ten conference should be locked in for years to come.

Adam Nightingale would have fit the Chicago Blackhawks well

The vision for the Blackhawks have interest in Nightingale makes a ton of sense. Similar to Carle, he is younger and has had success at the collegiate level while working with future NHL talent. The 45-year-old coached Chicago’s number two overall draft choice last summer, Artyom Levshunov, in his lone season in East Lansing. Nightingale is growing something special at Michigan State, so him wanting to stay there shouldn’t been seen as a shot taken at the Blackhawks or any other NHL organization that might have had interest in him taking over behind their bench.

General manager Kyle Davidson reportedly met with former Red Wings head coach, Jeff Blashill, regarding the teams opening. Many believe he is the front-runner for the position at the moment, but nothing is set in stone. The decision could be made by the front office to fill the vacancy as soon as next week.