(Notre Dame) — In a press release today, the University of Notre Dame officially named Brock Sheahan as the Irish hockey coach.

Sheahan succeeds Jeff Jackson who concluded his time behind the Irish bench Saturday night as the winningest coach in program history and ranks ninth all-time in Division I men’s ice hockey head coaching wins with 601.

“The support of Coach Jackson through this entire process means so much to me,” says Sheahan, a 2008 Irish grad. “His faith in my ability to lead the program forward has been invaluable, and I know we will build on the foundation he, Coach Pooley, and Coach Slaggert have set over the last 20 years. The future of Notre Dame hockey is bright, and without the amazing work done by Coach Jackson, and his entire staff the program would not be where it is today.”

A defenseman for the Irish from 2004-08, and a member of the program’s first Frozen Four team, Sheahan becomes the fifth head coach in modern Notre Dame hockey history. Sheahan was a member of Jackson’s original Irish team and helped lead the Irish to their first berth in the Frozen Four championship game as a senior defenseman.

He returned to the Irish as an Associate Head Coach prior to the 2023-24 season and has been instrumental in the development of a young roster, where sophomores accounted for four of Notre Dame’s top seven scorers.

Sheahan returned to the Irish following a one-year stint as head coach of the Chicago Wolves (American Hockey League). In just one season at the head of the Wolves, he led his team to a 35-29-5 regular season record.

Prior to his time with the Wolves, he spent four years with the Chicago Steel of the United States Hockey League, a junior level program developing the next generation of hockey talent. During his tenure with the Steel, Sheahan’s teams won two Anderson Cups, awarded to the league’s regular season champions as well as capturing the 2021 Clark Cup championship.

Veteran assistant Andy Slaggert remains on the Irish staff as associate head coach.