David Nies - Hockey Coach - Miami University RedHawks

David Nies

Title:
General Manager/Assistant Coach
Email:
niesdm@miamioh.edu
Phone:
513-529-9811

David Nies joined the Miami Hockey coaching staff in May 2024 and became the program's general manager in June 2025. Nies, who served as recruiting coordinator for the RedHawks during the 2024-25 season, came to Miami after spending the previous season as the United States National Team Development Program's Assistant Director of Player Personnel.

Nies was part of a historic turnaround in his second season with the RedHawks, as Miami jumped from three wins the previous season to an 18-16-2 mark in 2025-26. Miami matched the largest single-season improvement in regular-season wins in program history (+15 in 1996-97) and the third-largest nationally over the past half-century (excluding forfeits and COVID), finishing with a winning record for the first time since last qualifying for the NCAA Tournament in 2015.

The Red and White won the program’s first trophy in a decade, claiming the Belpot at the Friendship Four in Belfast, and returned to the national rankings for the first time since 2019. The RedHawks won their first six games of the season, posted a 9-1 mark in non-conference games, and enjoyed their longest NCHC winning streak ever (five games). Head coach Anthony Noreen was a top-three finalist for NCHC Coach of the Year as Miami matched its highest finish in the conference standings since 2015-16, finishing seventh with a 9-13-2 league record. The RedHawks posted four wins over nationally-ranked teams, including a sweep at No. 20 St. Cloud State in January and a home win over defending national champion No. 4 Western Michigan.

The Red and White also welcomed the first capacity sellout crowd to Steve “Coach” Cady Arena in more than 10 years and sold out four games in all, finishing with a winning record on home ice for the first time since 2015-16.

Matteo Drobac was named Third-Team All-NCHC and was a finalist for NCHC Goaltender of the Year, finishing the season ranked among Miami’s top-10 single-season leaders in wins, saves, shutouts and minutes played in net. David Deputy, an All-Rookie Team selection, was a finalist for NCHC Rookie of the Year and the National’s Three Stars Award after becoming the first RedHawk with 15 goals in a season since 2017-18.Blake Mesenburg was a national finalist for Team IMPACT’s Teammate of the Year award and became the first player in Miami history to win the NCHC Sportsmanship Award. Miami players won 16 weekly or monthly NCHC awards during the 2025-26 campaign, led by Deputy’s five (one Rookie of the Month and four Rookie of the Week nods). Six different RedHawks produced at least 20 points (the most since 2017-18), including top NHL prospect Ilia Morozov (who began the season as the youngest Division I player in the nation).

The RedHawks continued to excel in the classroom as well, with several student-athletes earning Honor Roll and Distinguished Scholar-Athlete recognition from the National. Additionally, Brayden Morrison was named to the first NCHC Academic All-Conference team.

In Nies' first season with the RedHawks, Miami started unbeaten in its first four games, highlighted by a sweep of Alaska Anchorage, before going on to finish ninth in the competitive National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC). The Red and White’s 29-man roster produced a program-record 24 NCHC Academic All-Conference selections (3.0 or better cumulative GPA) and 16 Distinguished Scholar-Athletes (3.5+ GPA), while Miami captain Ryan Sullivan was named a finalist for the conference’s Sportsmanship Award. The ensuing offseason saw the RedHawks’ recruiting class and transfer portal additions both ranked among the top 10 in the country by Neutral Zone.

During his time with the USNTDP (2023-24), Nies was involved in all aspects of identifying, scouting and recruiting players in the 2008 and 2009 birth classes. He had previously served as an assistant coach under Anthony Noreen with the USHL's Tri-City Storm (2021-2023).

In Nies' time at Tri-City, the Storm won the Anderson Cup in 2021-22, bolstered by the top-ranked penalty kill in the league. Nies oversaw the penalty kill and was responsible for defensemen development, in addition to assisting Noreen in all facets of team management.

Nies' previous stop, also in the USHL, was with the Omaha Lancers, where he served as associate head coach and assistant general manager from 2018-2021. He has coached with Amarillo in the NAHL (2017-18) and been part of college coaching staffs at Merrimack College (2016-17), Curry College (2015-16), Ohio University (2014-15) and the University of Southern Maine (2013-14).

Before coming to Oxford, Nies scouted and coached a total of 33 NHL draft picks and 133 Division I college players in his various stops. He worked as an on-ice skills coach with NHL Draft picks Jordan Harris, Sam Colangelo, Michael Kesselring and Alex Jefferies.

As a player at Southern Maine, Nies was an ECAC All-Academic honoree from 2010-2013 and served as the Huskies' team captain from 2011-2013. He owns a Bachelor's degree in Criminology from USM and a Master's in Sports Pedagogy from Ohio.