Dallas Franklin Eakins (né Yoder; January 20, 1967) is an American professional ice hockey coach and former player. He is the head coach of the Anaheim Ducks of the National Hockey League (NHL). He previously served as the head coach of the Edmonton Oilers of the NHL. 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