After naming a new head coach recently the Saskatoon Blades are announcing another addition to their coaching staff.
The Blades announced Dan DaSilva as their new assistant coach in a media release Friday.
Saskatoon, SK – The Saskatoon Blades are pleased to welcome Dan DaSilva as the team’s new assistant coach.
Born and raised in Saskatoon, this will be Dan’s first coaching job after playing professionally across numerous parts of the world for the last 16 seasons.
“Dan is an eager coach with a high level of professional playing experience that will be invaluable to our players in their skill and tactical development,” stated Blades head coach Brennan Sonne. “Beyond that, he’s a very good person, and is highly regarded by his teammates and coaches alike. We are thrilled to be working with Dan.”
DaSilva currently resides in Saskatoon with his wife of eight years, Chelsey, and has two sons, Dawson and Lukas. The 36-year-old spent his three-year junior hockey career entirely in Portland, scoring 151 points (76G-75A) and collecting 328 penalty minutes over 200 games for the Winterhawks. In the summer of 2005, the right-winger was named to the WHL West Second All-Star team, and made the quick transition to professional hockey later that fall suiting up with the Lowell Lock Monsters, the AHL affiliate of the Colorado Avalanche. The majority of DaSilva’s professional playing career was spent in the AHL dressing for five different teams — the Lock Monsters, Albany River Rats, Lake Erie Monsters, Worcester Sharks, and Houston Aeros — over eight seasons.
However, the Saskatoon-product’s journeyman career also took him overseas, predominantly lacing up with the Black Wings Linz of the ICE Hockey League in Austria. In five seasons with the Black Wings, spanning from 2015-16 to 2019-20, DaSilva piled up 255 points (109G-146A) and 204 penalty minutes in 237 games.
“I’m very excited for the opportunity to be a part of the Blades organization,” said DaSilva. “As someone who’s born and raised in Saskatoon, some of my first hockey heroes were players for the Blades in the 1990’s. I’m thrilled to give back to a team I grew up idolizing. It’s going to be a great experience being able to coach in front of my family and friends in my hometown.” On top of his time in Austria, DaSilva has European playing experience in Russia’s KHL, Germany’s DEL, and the SL in Switzerland.
DaSilva will join Brennan Sonne’s coaching staff that includes associate coach Ryan Marsh, goaltending coach Jeff Harvey, and assistant coach Jerome Engele.
