Born in 1975 in Warwick, RI, John Hynes played his high school hockey at Toll Gate, earning All-State honors before suiting up at Boston University.
Over John’s time at BU, the Terriers participated in four straight NCAA “Frozen Four” tournaments. The highlight of his collegiate hockey career came in front of his hometown crowd at the Providence Civic Center where he helped the Terriers capture the 1995 NCAA National Championship.
After graduation, John began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at his alma mater under Jack Parker. He moved on as an assistant coach at UMass-Lowell in 2000-01 and later served in that same capacity at the University of Wisconsin.
Starting in 2003, John served six years as head coach with USA Hockey’s National Development Team Program, helping in the development of future NHL future superstars Patrick Kane, Phil Kessel, Ryan Kesler, and Zach Parise, among others.
John would go on to lead the U.S. National Team to three medals at the IIHF World U-18 Championships – winning gold in 2006, silver in 2004, and bronze in 2008. He later served as an assistant coach for the U.S. team that competed in the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. In 2016, John made his debut as head coach of the U.S. Men’s National Team. Over his time with USA Hockey, he led his squads to a 188-131-16-10 overall record.
In 2015, at age 40, John Hynes became the youngest head coach in the NHL while taking over the reigns of the rebuilding New Jersey Devils.
Over the prior five seasons, Hynes served as head coach of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, the AHL affiliate of the Pittsburgh Penguins. His teams went 231-126-10-17 during John’s tenure, including five consecutive 40-plus win seasons and qualified for the AHL playoffs every season.
The Pens posted the best record in the AHL in 2010-11 and Hynes won the Louis A.R. Pieri Memorial award as the league’s Coach of the Year. That season, his first as head coach at the pro level, he led Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins to a 58-21-0-1 record. During John’s tenure, the Pens led the AHL in goals against four times in five seasons.
On January 7, 2020, Hynes was named as the new head coach of the NHL’s Nashville Predators, serving in that capacity through the 2022-23 season. On November 27, 2023, John was named head coach of the NHL’s Minnesota Wild.
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