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Columbus assistant coach leaves team due to ‘private family matter’

DanHinote

Assistant coach Dan Hinote is leaving the Columbus Blue Jackets organization due to a personal matter, the club announced on Tuesday.

“I’m disappointed that Dan won’t be continuing the work we’ve started here, but I understand his desire and need to put family matters first,” said Blue Jackets Head Coach Todd Richards said in a statement. “He has been a great asset to our staff and I want to thank him for his hard work and dedication.”

Here’s more, from the Columbus Dispatch:

Hinote, citing a “private family matter,” will move to Chicago later this summer, he told The Dispatch. He declined to comment further.

The Blue Jackets hired Hinote as a third assistant coach four seasons ago, after his playing career ended with a season in Europe. He was promoted to replace Keith Acton two years ago when Acton left for Edmonton.

Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen signed Richards to a two-year extension last month, putting him under contract through the 2016-17 season. The assistants are next in line for long-term deals.

Hinote, 37, joined the Jackets’ coaching staff just two years after wrapping his NHL career. His best season came during the 2000-01 campaign, when he posted a career-high 15 points for the Stanley Cup-winning Avalanche.

Losing Hinote could be big for Columbus. He’s part of a coaching staff that’s been praised repeatedly throughout the last two seasons for coaxing good results out of a hard-working team, one that won its first-ever playoff games against Pittsburgh this spring.