Former Miami coach Blasi named associate athletic director for Providence men’s, women’s hockey

Enrico Blasi gets fired up during a game with Miami at Providence back in 2013 (photo: Rich Gagnon).

Providence announced Thursday the hiring of Enrico Blasi as associate athletic director for men’s and women’s hockey.

Blasi will provide leadership, management, and administrative oversight to the men’s and women’s ice hockey programs, as well as day-to-day supervision of Schneider Arena programs and events.

“We are excited that Rico will be joining our staff in Friartown,” PC athletic director Bob Driscoll said in a statement. “He has a tremendous amount of experience in college hockey and I believe he will be an excellent resource for our athletic department. His knowledge and desire to help our programs improve was one of the many aspects that impressed me.”

Blasi spent 20 seasons (1999-2019) as the head coach for Miami, guiding the RedHawks to national prominence with back-to-back NCAA Frozen Four appearances in 2009 (semifinalist) and 2010 (finalist). Blasi’s teams also boasted three CCHA regular-season titles (2006, 2010, 2013), a CCHA tournament title (2011) and an NCHC tournament championship (2015).

During his tenure, the RedHawks appeared in 10 NCAA tournaments, including eight-consecutive appearances from 2006 to 2013.

Blasi’s success on the ice earned him five CCHA Coach of the Year awards (2001, 2004, 2006, 2010, 2013) and a Spencer Penrose National Coach of the Year award in 2006. He has also served as the chair of the NCAA Hockey Rules Committee (2005-07), on the AHCA Board of Governors (2005-08) and as AHCA President (2017-20).

Prior to coaching the RedHawks, Blasi spent four seasons at Denver as an assistant coach (1995-99).

A native of Weston, Ont., Blasi earned a Bachelor of Science degree in education from Miami in 1994. As a student-athlete, he totaled 128 points in 151 games played (1990-94) for the RedHawks and captained the team in his senior season.