Dan Muse (born July 21, 1982) is an American professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

coach who is the

head coach A head coach, senior coach, or manager is a professional responsible for training and developing athletes within a sports team. This role often has a higher public profile and salary than other coaching positions. In some sports, such as associat ...

of the

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. The Penguins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), E ...

of the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

(NHL). Following four years playing

college ice hockey College ice hockey is played principally in the United States and Canada, though leagues exist outside North America. In the United States, competitive "college hockey" refers to ice hockey played between colleges and universities within the go ...

, Muse began coaching at the high school and college levels, winning an

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

(NCAA) national championship as an assistant coach at

Yale Yale University is a private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, and one of the nine colonial colleges ch ...

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

. Muse subsequently won a

Clark Cup The United States Hockey League began in 1961 as a semi-professional ice hockey league. Starting with the 1979–80 season, the league became a strictly Amateur league, and began awarding its champion the Clark Cup Trophy. All champions of the USH ...

championship with the

Chicago Steel The Chicago Steel are an ice hockey team that plays in the United States Hockey League since 2000. The Steel have played their home games at Fox Valley Ice Arena in Geneva, Illinois since 2015; previously, the team played at Edge Ice Arena in ...

of the

United States Hockey League The United States Hockey League (USHL) is the top junior ice hockey league sanctioned by USA Hockey. The league consists of 16 active teams located in the Midwestern United States and Great Plains, for players between the ages of 16 and 21. Th ...

(USHL) in 2017, his first head coaching job, before spending three seasons as an assistant with the NHL's

Nashville Predators The Nashville Predators (colloquially referred to as the Preds) are a professional ice hockey team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Predators compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Divisio ...

. He then spent three further seasons in various head coaching roles with the

USA Hockey National Team Development Program The United States National Team Development Program (NTDP) represents the United States in the IIHF World U18 Championship. Additionally the team plays domestically against opponents in the United States Hockey League (under-17 and under-18 t ...

(NTDP), winning a gold medal at the 2023 World U18 Championships, before returning to the NHL as a

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in New York City. The Rangers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team plays ...

assistant in 2023. Ahead of the

2025–26 NHL season The 2025–26 NHL season is the upcoming 109th season of operation (108th season of play) of the National Hockey League (NHL). The regular season is scheduled to begin on October 7, 2025. A mid-season break will take place in February due to the ...

, Muse was named head coach of the Penguins.

Early life and education

Muse was born in

Canton, Massachusetts Canton is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 24,370 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Canton is part of Greater Boston, about southwest of Downtown Boston. History The area that is present ...

, on July 21, 1982. Muse played ice hockey from a young age, despite limited opportunities during part of his childhood living on a farm in

northern California Northern California (commonly shortened to NorCal) is a geocultural region that comprises the northern portion of the U.S. state of California, spanning the northernmost 48 of the state's List of counties in California, 58 counties. Northern Ca ...

; following his family's move to

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

, Muse was partly mentored at a Birmingham Bulls youth camp by minor-league defenseman Paul Marshall. Muse's family also spent time in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

and

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Massachusetts, second-most populous city in the U.S. state of Massachusetts and the list of United States cities by population, 113th most populous city in the United States. Named after Worcester ...

, before moving to Canton when Muse was in eighth grade. After playing high school ice hockey at

Vermont Academy Vermont Academy (VA) is a private, co-educational, college preparatory, boarding and day school in Saxtons River, Vermont, serving students from ninth through twelfth grade, as well as postgraduates. Founded in 1876, the campus was listed on ...

, Muse subsequently attended

Stonehill College Stonehill College is a private Catholic college in Easton, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded in 1948 by the Congregation of Holy Cross and is located on the original estate of Frederick Lothrop Ames Jr., with 29 buildings that compl ...

, playing four years at

(NCAA)

Division III In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Association football *Belgian Third ...

level for the Chieftains/Skyhawks under head coach

Scott Harlow Scott Christopher Harlow (born October 11, 1963) is an American retired professional ice hockey left winger who played one game in the NHL with the St. Louis Blues during the 1987–88 NHL season. Harlow was selected in the 3rd round (61st overa ...

and serving as an alternate captain his senior year. Following his time at Stonehill, Muse nearly attended

law school A law school (also known as a law centre/center, college of law, or faculty of law) is an institution, professional school, or department of a college or university specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for b ...

, and briefly taught history at

Archbishop Williams High School Archbishop Williams High School is a coeducation, co-educational Catholicism, Catholic school in Braintree, Massachusetts, Braintree, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded in 1949 by the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth. Archbishop William ...

Braintree, Massachusetts Braintree () is a municipality in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. It is officially known as a town, but Braintree is a city with a mayor-council form of government, and it is considered a city under Massachusetts law. The populat ...

Coaching career

College and juniors

During his time as a teacher at Archbishop Williams, Muse also served as an assistant coach for

Milton Academy Milton Academy (informally referred to as Milton) is a coeducational, co-educational, Independent school, independent, and College-preparatory school, college-preparatory boarding and day school in Milton, Massachusetts, educating students in g ...

's ice hockey team in nearby Milton. He subsequently left his teaching career to coach full-time, spending the 2007–08 season working as an assistant coach at Division III

Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim ...

under Bill Kangas, before jumping to

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest division of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athlet ...

with

Sacred Heart The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus () is one of the most widely practised and well-known Catholic devotions, wherein the heart of Jesus Christ is viewed as a symbol of "God's boundless and passionate love for mankind". This devotion to Christ is p ...

of the

Atlantic Hockey The Atlantic Hockey Association (AHA) was an NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey conference which operates primarily in the northeastern United States. It participated in the NCAA's Division I as an ice hockey-only conference. Unlike several other ...

conference for the 2008–09 season. One year later, Muse was hired as an assistant coach under Keith Allain for the

Yale Bulldogs The Yale Bulldogs are the college sports teams that represent Yale University, located in New Haven, Connecticut. The school sponsors 35 varsity sports. The school has won two National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA national championships ...

of the

ECAC Hockey ECAC Hockey is one of the six conferences that compete in NCAA Division I college ice hockey, ice hockey. The conference used to be affiliated with the Eastern College Athletic Conference, a consortium of over 300 colleges in the eastern United ...

conference. In six seasons with Yale, Muse helped the team to four NCAA tournament appearances, a conference championship in

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

, and the program's first national championship in

. In his final season, Muse was promoted to associate head coach. Following the 2014–15 season, Muse departed the Bulldogs to take his first head coaching job with the

of the

junior Junior or Juniors may refer to: Aircraft * Ekolot JK-05L Junior, a Polish ultralight aircraft * PZL-112 Junior, a Polish training aircraft * SZD-51 Junior, a Polish-made training and club glider Arts and entertainment Characters * Bowser Jr., ...

-level

(USHL). In the 2016–17 season, Muse led the Steel to the best record in the Eastern Conference, with the team ultimately winning their first

championship.

Nashville Predators

Following the Steel's Clark Cup championship, Muse was hired by the

of the

(NHL) as an assistant coach under

Peter Laviolette Peter Philip Laviolette Jr. (born December 7, 1964) is an American professional ice hockey coach and former player who most recently served as the head coach for the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Originally undrafted by t ...

. In three seasons with Nashville, Muse primarily ran the team's

penalty kill Short-handed is a term used in ice hockey and several related sports, including water polo, and refers to having fewer players on the ice during play, as a result of a penalty. The player removed from play serves the penalty in the penalty box f ...

, helping the Predators to a

Presidents' Trophy The Presidents' Trophy () is an award presented by the National Hockey League (NHL) to the team that finishes with the most points (i.e., best overall record) during the regular season. If two teams are tied for the most points, then the Trophy ...

regular season title in 2017–18. After Laviolette's mid-season firing during the Predators' 2019–20 campaign, Muse's contract was not renewed by the Predators following their elimination from the

2020 Stanley Cup playoffs The 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs was the playoff tournament of the National Hockey League (NHL) for the 2019–20 season. The playoffs began on August 1, 2020, and concluded on September 28, 2020, with the Tampa Bay Lightning winning their second ...

USA Hockey National Team Development Program

Shortly after his departure from Nashville, Muse joined the

(NTDP) as a coach. Muse initially served as head coach of the under-18 team during the

2020–21 USHL season The 2020–21 USHL season was the 42nd season of the United States Hockey League as an all-junior league. Due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the previous season was curtailed on March 12, 2020, without holding a playoff or awarding a Clar ...

and 2021 World U18 Championships, before switching to the under-17 team for the 2021–22 season. Upon his return to the under-18 team for the 2022–23 season, Muse led the team to an NTDP record-setting 16 wins over NCAA opponents, with 15 over Division I opponents. Muse was praised for his time with the NTDP by NHL entry draft prospects including Ryan Leonard, Oliver Moore, and

Will Smith Willard Carroll Smith II (born September 25, 1968) is an American actor, rapper, and film producer. Known for his work in both Will Smith filmography, the screen and Will Smith discography, music industries, List of awards and nominations re ...

, and coached multiple other future NHL players, including

Logan Cooley Logan Cooley (born May 4, 2004) is an American professional ice hockey center for the Utah Mammoth of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was drafted third overall by the Arizona Coyotes in the 2022 NHL entry draft. Playing career Cooley play ...

and

Rutger McGroarty Rutger McGroarty (born March 30, 2004) is an American professional ice hockey forward for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected in the first round, 14th overall, by the Winnipeg Jets in the 2022 NHL entr ...

New York Rangers

Ahead of the 2023–24 season, Muse rejoined Peter Laviolette as an assistant coach with the

. Once again coaching the penalty kill, Muse helped the Rangers to the Presidents' Trophy in his first season, though Laviolette was again fired following the 2024–25 season. Despite this, Muse was reportedly offered the opportunity to interview with the new Rangers coaching staff.

Pittsburgh Penguins

On June 4, 2025, Muse was named head coach of the NHL's

, succeeding Mike Sullivan as the 23rd head coach in franchise history.

International

Muse's first work with

USA Hockey USA Hockey is a national ice hockey organization in the United States. It is recognized by the International Olympic Committee and the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee as the governing body for organized ice hockey in the United S ...

came at the 2013 World Junior Championships with the United States men's junior team, where he served as video coach; after the U.S. won the gold medal, he subsequently reprised the role for the 2014 tournament. Later, as part of his responsibilities with the NTDP, Muse coached the U.S. teams at the

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

and 2023 World U18 Championships, winning a gold medal in the latter. Muse spent the 2021–22 season coaching the under-17 national team.

Personal life

As of 2020, Muse resided in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

, with his wife and their four children.

Awards and honors

References

External links

* * Staff profile fro
Eliteprospects.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Muse, Dan 1982 births Living people American men's ice hockey forwards Ice hockey coaches from Massachusetts Ice hockey players from Massachusetts Nashville Predators coaches New York Rangers coaches People from Canton, Massachusetts Pittsburgh Penguins coaches Sacred Heart Pioneers men's ice hockey coaches Schoolteachers from Massachusetts Stonehill College alumni Stonehill Skyhawks men's ice hockey players Vermont Academy alumni Williams Ephs men's ice hockey coaches Yale Bulldogs men's ice hockey coaches