Derek_King

Derek King will return to the Chicago Blackhawks as an assistant next season after he was not retained as coach.

King replaced Jeremy Colliton on Nov. 7. The Blackhawks hired Luke Richardson as coach June 27.
"It's great to have this experienced staff with me behind the bench," Richardson said. "Derek has made an impact here on this organization and I'm thrilled to have someone like him on our staff."
King was 27-33-10 as Blackhawks coach. They lost their first nine games (0-7-2), were 1-9-2 when Colliton was fired and finished 28-42-12, seventh in the Central Division.
Chicago has finished sixth or worse in its division in each of the past five seasons and qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs once in that span. It's won one playoff series since winning the Stanley Cup in 2015, defeating the Edmonton Oilers in four games in the best-of-5 Stanley Cup Qualifiers in 2020.
King returns after the Blackhawks traded forward Alex DeBrincat to the Ottawa Senators before the start of the 2022 Upper Deck NHL Draft on July 7 for the Nos. 7 and 39 picks and a third-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft. DeBrincat had 78 points in 82 games this season, leading Chicago with 41 goals to tie his NHL career high set in 2018-19.
The Blackhawks then traded center Kirby Dach, the No. 3 pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, to the Montreal Canadiens for a first- and third-round pick (Nos. 13 and 66) in the 2022 draft. They selected defenseman Kevin Korchinski at No. 7, center Frank Nazar at No. 13 and defenseman Sam Rinzel at No. 25.
Kevin Dean was also hired as a Blackhawks assistant. Goaltending coach Jimmy Waite and video coach Matt Meacham will each return next season.
"Kevin's mind for the game and defensive focus will be an asset for us," Richardson said. "It's great to have the cornerstone of this coaching group finalized and we will continue to add a few pieces."