Chris Chelios is serving as an assistant coach with the 2018 U.S. Olympic Men’s Ice Hockey Team. It marks the first time he has served on the coaching staff for an Olympic team.
Chelios previously served as an assistant coach for the 2016 U.S. National Junior Team, helping them capture a bronze medal. Chelios also recently served as an assistant coach for the Detroit Red Wings in 2015-16, after spending five seasons working closely with the Red Wings and their American Hockey League affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins, to help develop and mentor young players within the organization.
As a player, Chelios represented the United States as a player on 10 different occasions, including four Olympic Winter Games (1984, 1998, 2002, 2006), three Canada Cups (1984, 1987, 1991), two World Cup of Hockey events (1996, 2004) and once at the World Junior Championship (1982). In addition to helping the U.S. win the championship in the inaugural 1996 World Cup of Hockey, Chelios captained the 2002 U.S. Olympic Men’s Ice Hockey Team that earned a silver medal at the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City.
Elected to the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame in 2011 and the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2013, Chelios spent 26 seasons in the NHL before retiring as the all-time leader in games played by a defensemen in league history (1,651). The second-round pick (40th overall) of the Montreal Canadiens in the 1981 NHL Entry Draft, he won three Stanley Cups (Montreal: 1986; Detroit: 2002, 2008) and was awarded the Norris Trophy three times (1989, 1993, 1996) as the NHL’s best defenseman. His 948 career points (185-793) rank 10th all-time among NHL defensemen. He also won an NCAA national title as a player at the University of Wisconsin in 1983, where he was named to the NCAA all-tournament team.
Chelios lives in the Detroit area with his wife, Tracee. The couple has two daughters, Caley and Tara, and two sons, Dean and Jake. Both Dean and Jake skated for Michigan State University and made their professional hockey debuts in the 2014-15 season.