6 former Miami Redhawks players who won the Stanley Cup – Hockey Writer – Hockey History
The University of Miami (Ohio) has cultivated many NHL talents over its 47-year history, with a few alumni continuing to reach the top of the sport.
Here are six former Red Hawks who lifted up the Stanley Cup.
Dan Boyle (1 Stanley Cup)
Dan Boyle is an outstanding two-way defender who won his solo Stanley Cup with Tampa Bay Lightning in 2004, known for his ability and power play in hockey, Boyle has competed in over 1,000 NHL games and won the 2010 Olympic gold medal against Olympic Gold in 2010.
Boyle played for four seasons in Miami from 1994 to 1998 under head coach Mark Mazzoleni, and served as a replacement captain in his final season. He scored 147 points in 148 NCAA games.
He was appointed to the NCAA (CCHA) Jellokee in 1994-95 and received back-to-back NCAA (Western) All-American honors in 1996-97 and 1997-98. In his junior year, he was also named the best offensive defender in CCHA and was named a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award.
Boyle continued to pursue an outstanding career. His NHL total includes 1,093 games, 163 goals, 442 assists and 605 points.
His strong professional honor list includes: American Hockey League (AHL) All-Rook (1998-99), AHL All-Star Game (1998-99, 1999-00), AHL Second All-Star Team (1998-99, 1999-99, 1999-00), NHL Playoffs, Defenseman (2004) All-Seconsmeman (2004), NHL Second Place, September 2006 09090909-09-07-09–07-07, – 09797, – 0979–07-07, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, – 097, 097, – 097, – 097, – 097; All-Star Game (2009, 2011), NHL playoffs won most defense players (2011), NHL playoffs playoffs (2011), Olympic gold medals (2010) and World Championship Silver medals (2004-05).
Boyle ended his great career after the 2015-2016 season.
Kevyn Adams (1 Stanley Cup)
Kevyn Adams played in Miami from 1992 to 1996, appeared in 159 games in four seasons and became one of the early stars of the program. He played with Boyle for two seasons and fit under two different head coaches in Miami. George Gwozdecky was his first two seasons coach before leaving the University of Denver Job where he spent 19 seasons and won NCAA titles in 2004 and 2005.
Adams was ranked 25th in the first round by the Boston Bruins in the 1993 NHL Draft. He is a skilled hockey IQ center, leading Miami in each of his last three seasons and captained in 1995-96. He won the NCAA (CCHA) second-place All-Star honors in 1994-95 and completed his Redhawks career leading by seventh (69) and fourth (172) in goals.
His contribution helped Miami win its first NCAA Championship berth in 1993 and was inducted into the Redhawks Athletic Hall of Fame in 2011.
Adams continued to play over 500 NHL games with Toronto Maple Leafs, Columbus Blue Jackets, Panthers and Carolina Hurricanes. His biggest moment was in the 2006 Hurricane, where he won the Stanley Cup while being one of the team’s reliable two-way forwards.
Adams entered management after retiring with Chicago in 2008. He has been general manager of Buffalo Saber since 2020 and is currently facing the task of rebuilding a tough franchise that has not made the playoffs since 2011.
Jeff Zatkoff (1 Stanley Cup)
Jeff Zatkoff played for three seasons at Miami University from 2005 to 2008 and made 100 games, leading the Redhawks to several NCAA tournaments under then-head coach Enrico Blasi. During his sophomore and junior seasons, he became the program’s main goalkeeper, ranking all over the United States on the percentage of savings (SV%) in the 2007-08 season. That season, he was named the NCAA (CCHA) No. 1 All-Star team and the NCAA (Western) No. 2 All-American team.
Zatkoff was selected by the Los Angeles Kings in the third round of the 2006 NHL draft. After leaving Miami, he began his career with the Kings and spent several seasons in the AHL.
Later, he signed with the Pittsburgh Penguins, making his NHL debut in the 2013-14 season. Zatkoff played a major in-depth role for Pittsburgh in the 2015-16 season, starting the first game of the Stanley Cup playoffs against the Rangers and winning the first game. Although he was the third goalkeeper in most of the playoffs, he was on the Penguins roster that went on to win the Stanley Cup that season.
Zatkoff is the only former Miami goalkeeper to win the Stanley Cup. During his NHL career, he played in 48 regular season games and posted a 18-21-4 record with a goal average (GAA) of 2.89 and a 0.908 SV% record, which also appeared in two playoff games. He posted 0.908 SV% and 3.07 GAA with a 1-1 record.
Zatkoff retired with Germany’s Straubing Tigers after the 2019-20 season, ending an up and down career that allowed him to compete in all three North American professional leagues and even overseas competitions.
Riley Smith (1 Stanley Cup)
Reilly Smith played for three seasons at Miami University in Blasi from 2009 to 2012 and grew into one of the program’s most dynamic strikers. As a freshman, he helped Miami win the 2009-2010 CCHA regular season championship, contributing important offenses to the team’s NCAA Championship game. Smith improved the game in 2010-11, earned NCAA (CCHA) championship honors and won the NCAA (CCHA) No. 1 All-Star position.
During his junior season in 2011-12, Smith served as captain of Miami and produced one of the best offensive seasons in school history. He repeated his NCAA (CCHA) No. 1 All-Star team selection, was named NCAA (West) No. 1 All-American team, and became a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award. In three seasons at Oxford, Smith played 121 games, scored 66 goals and added 56 assists to score 122 points.
After leaving Miami, Smith quickly improved his career ranking. He was named the AHL rookie of the month in December 2012, and then established himself as a reliable NHL scorer. His career includes parking with Dallas Stars, Tan, Black Panthers and Las Vegas Golden Knights.
Smith’s biggest moment was in the 2022-23 season, when he helped Vegas compete in the first Stanley Cup. In Game 5 of the Stanley Cup final, Smith and former Redhawk Alec Martinez scored separately in less than two minutes, extending Vegas’ lead to 4-1 for the Florida Panthers. Smith’s goal was a Cup goal, sealing the first ever Stanley Cup for the Golden Knights series.
In 1,036 professional NHL games, Smith scored a total of 636 points in 15 seasons and maintained a record of all former Redhawk’s playoff scores (83) after the 2025 playoffs.
Smith is still active, and will remain active with Las Vegas in the 2025-26 season after signing a year-on-year, $2 million contract this offseason. He bounced around the NHL throughout his career, but on a strong team like Las Vegas, he had a great chance to lift the Stanley Cup.
Black Coleman (2 Stanley Cup)
After a great career in the USHL (American Hockey League), Blake Coleman spent four seasons at the University of Miami from 2011 to 2015. He was part of the 2012-2013 Redhawks team, which won the CCHA regular season title and played a major role in Miami’s transition to the NCHC under Blasi.
During his high school season (2014-2015), Coleman served as the replacement captain and led the Red Hawks to the NCAA (NCHC) championship. He was appointed as the NCAA (NCHC) All Championship team and received Championship MVP honors.
The team remains the last Miami team to qualify for the NCAA Championship, reaching the regional semifinals in a 7-5 win over Providence. The program has been working to return to the national meaning since that season.
Coleman’s style is always defined by the body. After making his debut with the New Jersey Devils in 2016-17, he spent three and a half seasons with the Devils before trading to the Lightning in February 2020. The move set the stage for a back-to-back Stanley Cup title, first in the 2019-20 Covid “Bubble” season, and then again in 2020-21. In the 2020 playoffs, he led all players with 126 strokes.
Internationally, Coleman also won a bronze medal with Team USA at the 2018 IIHF World Championships.
Now entering the 2025-26 season, Coleman is the replacement captain of the Calgary Flames, who also held the role last season. He has provided senior leadership for the reconstruction team through the 2026-27 campaign signing. In 10 NHL seasons, Coleman played 689 games, recorded 321 points, and still led his career.
Alec Martinez (3 cups in Stanley Cup)
Alec Martinez, one of the most famous former Red Hawks, won the Stanley Cup three times, twice with the Kings (2012, 2014) and won the game with the Golden Knights (2023). His difference is to have any former Redhawk Stanley Cup.
Martinez is known for his goal of winning in the 2014 famous Stanley Cup, which allowed the Kings to surpass the Rangers in Game 5.
That playoff, he also won the overtime title in Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals against the Chicago Blackhawks and sent the Kings to the final.
Before the NHL success, Martinez played for three seasons in Miami from 2005 to 2008, with him in 123 NCAA games totaling 67 points under Blasi.
As the Red Hawks, he scored many memorable goals, including a final goal against the Old Gokin Ice Arena in Western Michigan in March 2006, and an overtime championship in the 2008 CCHA semi-finals.
In the 2007 Kings, he ranked 95th in the fourth round. During his NHL career, Martinez has played in 862 regular season games, scoring 88 goals and 201 assists (289 points) and adding 14 goals and 23 assists in 131 playoff games. In the AHL, he played 163 games with the Manchester Monarch, scored 20 goals and made 49 assists.
Martinez officially retired on April 12, 2025 and became the Blackhawk, summing up a career that spans more than 1,000 professional games.
Miami’s legacy expectation
While watching the program’s 2025, sophomore head coach Anthony Noreen said he wanted to put Miami on the map several times and fill the walls of the Goggin Ice Center with more NHL names.
Related: Head coach Anthony Noreen’s Miami Redhawks offseason update
With the number of talents coming this season and more on the way, it feels like this program is finally heading in the right direction.
