Dallas Eakins

Dallas Franklin Eakins (né Yoder; January 20, 1967) is an American professional ice hockey coach and former player. He previously served as the head coach of the Edmonton Oilers and Anaheim Ducks of the National Hockey League (NHL). He currently serves as head coach and general manager of the Adler Mannheim of the German Deutsche Eishockey Liga.

Early years
Eakins' mother, Carol Ploof, was a native of Macon, Georgia. His birth father was a Native American, Ted Yoder, who Eakins believes was Cherokee. Both parents split up shortly after his birth. Ploof later married Jim Eakins, a Canadian long-distance truck driver, and Dallas subsequently adopted his stepfather's last name.

In October 1974, Eakins' family relocated to Peterborough, Ontario. As a youth, he played in the 1980 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey team from Peterborough.

Playing career
Eakins played 4 seasons in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) for the Peterborough Petes, being named the captain in his final year and also the team's best defenseman that season. Jeff Twohey who was with the Petes for 3 decades called him the best captain the team ever had, saying "He was a great leader. He was a hard worker, loyal, tough, and never afraid to confront people. He knew how to keep players in line."

Eakins was drafted 208th overall by the Washington Capitals in the 1985 NHL Entry Draft. He went on to play 120 career NHL games, scoring no goals and 9 assists for 9 points, thus becoming the second Floridian to play in the NHL, but the first to ever record a point. Eakins is the first player born in the state of Florida to play for the Florida Panthers, having played for the club on two separate stints (but was raised primarily in Canada). However, the majority of Eakins' career was played in the American Hockey League (AHL) and the International Hockey League (IHL). In those two leagues, Eakins played 882 games, scoring 43 goals and 179 assists for 222 points, whilst playing for 10 different teams. Eakins also won a Calder Cup and a Turner Cup as a member of the Chicago Wolves.

Eakins once made a bet with Cincinnati radio personality Dennis "Wildman" Walker of WEBN while a member of the Cincinnati Cyclones that he would not score more than 3 goals in one season. Walker stated that Eakins could shave his head at center ice of the Cincinnati Gardens if he eclipsed that mark. Eakins not only scored six goals but did it in 30 games. The head shaving took place at center ice, before a game in December 1994, against the Long Beach Ice Dogs.

While serving as the captain of the Manitoba Moose in the 2003–04, Eakins switched from his number 6 to number 37, in honor of his friend and former Wolves teammate, Dan Snyder, who was killed in a car accident in Atlanta, Georgia. Snyder was a member of the Atlanta Thrashers.

Coaching career
After retiring as a player, Eakins joined the Toronto Maple Leafs organization as an assistant coach for the Toronto Marlies and later the Maple Leafs in 2006. In 2009, he was given head coaching duties for the Marlies. While with the Marlies, Eakins was named as one of two head coaches representing the Western Conference for the 2011–2012 and 2012–2013 seasons AHL All-Star games.

Eakins left the Marlies in the summer of 2013 to become the head coach of the Edmonton Oilers, but was fired from his position after only 18 months on December 15, 2014. In June 2015, the Anaheim Ducks hired Eakins as the head coach of their AHL-affiliate, the San Diego Gulls.

On June 17, 2019, the Anaheim Ducks named Eakins as the franchise's 10th head coach. On April 14, 2023, the Ducks announced Eakins' contract would not be renewed, ending his four-year tenure as head coach.

On November 27, 2023, Eakins was announced as the new head coach and general manager of a struggling Adler Mannheim in the German DEL, after a mid-season dismissal of general manager Jan-Axel Alavaara and head coach Johan Lundskog.

Personal life
Eakins is married to actress Ingrid Kavelaars. They have two daughters together. His career is profiled in the book Journeymen: 24 Bittersweet Tales of Short Major League Sports Careers by Kurt Dusterberg.

NHL
* Shortened seasons due to the COVID-19 pandemic during the 2019–20 and 2020–21 seasons