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Chicago Blackhawks Hire Luke Richardson

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June 29: TSN’s Pierre LeBrun is reporting that the Blackhawks signed Richardson to a four-year contract. He’ll be the team’s head coach through 2025-26.

June 27: The Blackhawks have made it official, hiring Richardson as their next head coach. General manager Kyle Davidson released a statement:

We are excited having a seasoned coach like Luke join the organization as head coach. Luke shares our vision and goals for the future, and he will have an opportunity to build an environment and culture of high performance, hard work, and high accountability. Throughout the interview process, it became evident that he not only had every quality we were looking for in a head coach, but also is a high-character individual that was perfect to lead this next era of the Chicago Blackhawks. 

June 24: The Winnipeg Jets may be waiting on Barry Trotz to make a decision but the Chicago Blackhawks are nearing one of their own. Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff tweets that Luke Richardson is expected to be the next head coach of the Blackhawks, and the two sides are putting the finishing touches on a contract.  Scott Powers of The Athletic reported earlier today that Richardson, interim head coach Derek King, and Vancouver Canucks assistant Brad Shaw were the three finalists.

Richardson, who has spent the last four seasons as an assistant with the Montreal Canadiens, has long been looked at as a future NHL bench boss, even going back to his playing days. The 53-year-old former defenseman played more than 1,400 games in the league, and almost immediately transitioned onto an NHL coaching staff with the Ottawa Senators in 2009.

With the Blackhawks not expected to contend next season as they head into a complete rebuild, getting an inexperienced (and therefore inexpensive) bench boss always seemed to be the likely move. Richardson has just a handful of games as an NHL head coach–all coming in the 2021 playoffs when Dominique Ducharme was held out with COVID-19.

He does, however, have four years of experience as a head coach in the AHL, and is as well-respected an assistant as you will find around the league. His departure from the Canadiens will leave a substantial hole to fill, as Montreal tries to climb out of the bottom of the league under new head coach Martin St. Louis.

It is not clear what this would mean for King, who was brought up from the minor leagues to replace Jeremy Colliton early in the season. The Blackhawks went 27-33-10 under the interim boss, in his first taste of NHL head coaching. Powers wrote today that it would surprise him if the Rockford IceHogs didn’t stay with Anders Sorensen as head coach, meaning King could be looking for another role somewhere else.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Latest On Boston Bruins Coaching Search

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There could be an answer as soon as today on who will be the next head coach of the Boston Bruins and a new name has entered the ring. Joe McDonald of the Worcester Telegram & Gazette reports that Pittsburgh Penguins assistant Mike Vellucci has interviewed for the job. In fact, Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff believes that Vellucci has been interviewed twice now.

Still, Seravalli notes that the finalists are Vellucci, Jay Leach, and David Quinn, with many believing that the latter is the front-runner for the opening.

Vellucci, 55, may not have a lot of NHL experience but he is a proven winner at basically every level along the way. The former Hartford Whalers defenseman has won championships in the NAHL, OHL, and most recently the AHL, taking home the Calder Cup with the Charlotte Checkers in 2019. He has been named Coach of the Year at all three levels and has now been behind the bench with Pittsburgh for the past two seasons.

The Bruins, who fired Bruce Cassidy after a disappointing playoff exit, seem focused on less experienced names for the vacancy. Leach also has experience as a head coach in the minor leagues–with the Providence Bruins, no less–but has just one year behind an NHL bench as an assistant. David Quinn had just one year as an assistant when he landed the New York Rangers head coaching job in 2018, a tenure that lasted just three seasons.

Boston is one of three teams still without a coach, along with the Detroit Red Wings and Winnipeg Jets.

Vegas Golden Knights Make Coaching Hires

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The Vegas Golden Knights announced a series of coaching hires Tuesday night, adding John Stevens as their assistant coach, Sean Burke as their goalie coach and Director of Goaltending, and naming Mike Rosati as Manager of Goaltending Development and Scouting.

General manager Kelly McCrimmon gave the following statement on the hires:

John Stevens is a very respected NHL coach with an extensive resume that adds considerably to our staff. We are excited to add a two-time Stanley Cup winner with head coaching experience. Sean Burke is a great addition to the organization, with tremendous experience as an elite NHL goaltender and an accomplished coach and executive. We are pleased to keep Mike Rosati in an influential role across the organization. With those two and Henderson goaltending coach Fred Brathwaite, we have proven, qualified expertise at the goalie position.

While new head coach Bruce Cassidy won’t get to build the entire bench from scratch, he does get some fresh faces in here to join assistants Ryan Craig and Misha Donskov, who were retained in the wake of Peter DeBoer’s firing. Stevens comes in to replace both Steve Spott and Ryan McGill as an assistant, who were both fired days after DeBoer. Stevens has been an assistant for the Dallas Stars for the past three seasons, but most hockey fans will remember him as the head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers (2006-2009) and the Los Angeles Kings (2016-2018). In all, the 56-year-old Stevens has 15 years of NHL coaching experience.

Burke’s hiring isn’t huge news, as it was reported earlier in the week that Vegas would bring him on. Burke was not on an NHL staff during the 2021-22 season, but he spent seven years as the goalie coach of the Arizona Coyotes and a handful of months in 2021 as the goalie coach of the Montreal Canadiens. He replaces Rosati as the goalie coach, who moves to a more behind-the-scenes role in the organization.

East Notes: Quinn, Devils Front Office, Sabres

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Eyebrows raised leaguewide when the Boston Bruins fired Bruce Cassidy, letting him walk to the Vegas Golden Knights in coaching free agency. Now, they seem to have zeroed in on a replacement. Although he’s been interviewed and/or linked to multiple teams so far, The Fourth Period’s Shawn Hutcheon reports that the Bruins have made former New York Rangers head coach David Quinn their leading candidate for the role. While other names like former Providence head coach Jay Leach had been rumored, they seem to have opted for another “hometown” coach.

While a Rhode Island native, Quinn has extensive experience in the Boston area, spending multiple years as an associate coach and head coach with Boston University. Quinn did not coach this past season after the Rangers replaced him with Gerard Gallant this past offseason, aside from serving as the head coach for the United States at the Olympics and World Championships.

  • The New Jersey Devils seem to have quietly cleaned out some front office names, removing the roles of Patrick Rissmiller (player development coach), Pierre Mondou (amateur scout), and Andrey Plekhanov (European scout) from their website. Rissmiller will leave the only front office job he’s ever known, holding the role with New Jersey since he retired as a player in 2015. Mondou, 66, was let go after nearly 20 years of scouting for New Jersey. Plekhanov had been with the team for four seasons.
  • As the Buffalo Sabres look to finally take that next step forward in 2022-23, the team has announced the dates for their development camp. The session for fringe prospects and rookies will be held July 13-15, with a three-on-three tournament to be held on the 16th.

Minor Notes: Cross, Chaulk, Henault

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The 2021-22 campaign was an extremely successful one for the Springfield Thunderbirds, who fell just short of winning the 2022 Calder Cup. Newly affiliated with the St. Louis Blues, the Thunderbirds made the Calder Cup Final in the first season this iteration of the Springfield AHL franchise even made the playoffs.

Now, the team announced today that the man who captained them there is sticking around. Veteran defenseman Tommy Cross is staying in Springfield on a one-year AHL contract, continuing what’s been a long minor-league career for him. Now 32, the Connecticut native was a 2007 second-round pick of the Boston Bruins who, although he didn’t get a solid NHL role, stayed in the organization until 2018. He did get into four NHL games (three regular-season, one playoff) in Boston, registering a combined two assists. He was a captain in their organization as well, serving in the role for Providence from 2015-2018. One of the most well-respected leaders in the minors, Cross will get another chance at lifting the Calder Cup for the first time.

  • Colin Chaulk stepped into the head coaching role for the Bakersfield Condors when Jay Woodcroft got the call-up to Edmonton mid-season. Today, Bakersfield announced he’ll be sticking around, stripping away the interim tag and naming him the ninth head coach in team history. The Condors won their best-of-three First Round series against the Abbotsford Canucks, but were swept 3-0 in the Division Semifinals by the Stockton Heat.
  • The Baby Rangers are making moves. Via a team release, the Hartford Wolf Pack announced a one-year AHL contract for defenseman Louka Henault. The 2001-born Henault is an undrafted free agent, and after serving as the captain of the OHL’s Windsor Spitfires last season, will head to Hartford professionally. In his last season of juniors, Henault scored eight goals, 57 assists, and 65 points in 63 regular-season games, adding 16 points in 25 playoff games.

Snapshots: Makar, Detroit, New Jersey

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Not only did Cale Makar take home the Norris Trophy as the league’s best defenseman and win a Stanley Cup after just his third season in the league, but he was awarded the Conn Smythe as playoff MVP. It wasn’t a close race. All 18 voters selected the young Colorado Avalanche defenseman as the winner, utterly demolishing his only real competition in Nathan MacKinnon, who appeared on all but one ballot (15 second place votes, two third place).

It has been an incredible start to a career for Makar, who currently sits at 180 points in 178 regular season games, 60 more in 55 postseason contests, and now has three major individual awards before he even turns 24. His 29 points in this postseason are the fourth-most ever for a defenseman in a single year, trailing only Paul Coffey (37 in 1985), Brian Leetch (34 in 1994), and Al MacInnis (31 in 1989).

  • The Detroit Red Wings are getting closer to naming a head coach, now that they will be able to interview Tampa Bay Lightning assistants Jeff Halpern and Derek Lalonde. Ted Kulfan of The Detroit News writes that Lalonde is currently considered a slight favorite for the job after his impressive rise through the ranks as a head coach. The Tampa Bay assistant has previous stops as head man with the Green Bay Gamblers of the USHL, Toledo Walleye of the ECHL, and Iowa Wild of the AHL, having never experienced a losing season at any stop.
  • The New Jersey Devils have had preliminary contract talks with several pending free agents, including Mason Geertsen and A.J. Greer according to Ryan Novozinsky of NJ.com, but not Frederik Gauthier, who is set to hit the open market next month. It appears as though the 2013 first-round pick might have to find a new place to ply his trade, even after his best minor league season to date. The 27-year-old Gauthier had 32 points in 51 games for the Utica Comets but was held scoreless in eight NHL contests.

Vancouver Canucks Sign Three Players

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The Vancouver Canucks have tidied up some minor league negotiations, signing Sheldon Dries, Guillaume Brisebois, and John Stevens to two-way contracts. Dries has been signed for two years, while Brisbois and Stevens have both agreed to one-year deals. CapFriendly provides some details on the contracts:

  • Dries: 2022-23: $750K NHL/$450K AHL – 2023-24: $775K NHL/$450K AHL
  • Brisebois: $750K NHL/$180K AHL
  • Stevens: $750K NHL/$165K AHL ($180K guaranteed)

Now 28, the undrafted Dries is coming off the best season of his professional career. In 54 games with the Abbotsford Canucks, the undersized forward managed 35 goals and 62 points, while also spending a good bit of time in the NHL. Eleven games with Vancouver resulted in three points, and have earned him some organizational stability on a two-year deal.

While it is unlikely that he plays all 82 next season, Dries should continue to be a strong depth option for Vancouver and an elite option for Abbotsford. He’ll have to clear waivers again in order to be assigned to the minor leagues but that hasn’t been an issue previously.

Brisebois, 24, was unfortunately injured for a good portion of 2021-22, limiting him to just 26 games for Abbotsford and one for Vancouver. The big defenseman was a third-round pick in 2015 and has played in ten NHL games to this point. He too had no trouble clearing waivers this season and will likely be ticketed for the minor leagues once again in 2022-23.

Stevens, 28, is also coming off his best season as a pro, racking up 19 goals and 43 points with Abbotsford. Still without an appearance at the NHL level, the undrafted forward is finally healthy and ready to contribute at the AHL level, something that has been a struggle in the past.

The Canucks have put a huge emphasis on improving the quality of players for their AHL organization and are trying to make it as competitive an atmosphere as possible for their prospects. These three will help Abbotsford remain in the mix next season, pushing for a longer Calder Cup playoff run.

Jets Notes: Dubois, Scheifele, Coaching Search

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Ever since it was reported earlier this week that Winnipeg Jets forward Pierre-Luc Dubois had informed his team of his intentions to test free agency in 2024, it seemed likely that the Dubois storyline would be a major one for this offseason. Now, we have some additional details on Dubois’ choice regarding his future. Murat Ates of The Athletic believes that Dubois “quite sincerely” wants to test free agency, and has “not been shy” about communicating that desire to the team, as well as a desire to play in Montreal “in the long run” specifically. (subscription link)

Ates specifically mentioning Montreal confirms what many had believed about Dubois, that he had his eyes on playing in his home province. Dubois actually was almost drafted by the Canadiens at the 2016 draft, but the Blue Jackets took him third overall, which scuttled that possibility. Now, Dubois could be attempting to finally find his way to the Canadiens. The Canadiens have the opportunity to solidify a Nick Suzuki and Shane Wright one-two punch down the middle at the draft next month, so it’s fair to wonder if the Canadiens’ choice at number-one overall at the draft will ultimately have an impact on Dubois’ future in Winnipeg.

Now, for some other notes about the Jets:

  • One other situation worth monitoring in Winnipeg is the situation of first-line center Mark Scheifele. Ates reports that Scheifele’s name has “made it into preliminary trade conversations,” and further adds on that a contentious exit meeting between the forward and the Jets front office could broaden the fracture between the Jets and their other star center. Centers who can score at above a point-per-game rate, as Scheifele has for the past half-decade, are rarely made available on the trade market or in free agency. Teams looking for center help this offseason could add Scheifele’s name to their possible options, and any deal with him involved is sure to have a major impact on the futures of both the acquiring team and the Jets.
  • In the midst of news on Dubois, Scheifele, and Blake Wheeler, the ongoing Jets coaching search may have taken a bit of a back seat in the minds of Jets fans. It has become clear that widely reported number-one choice Barry Trotz won’t be an option, and that has left the Jets to sort through the remaining candidates to find their next bench boss. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that the following coaches are on the Jets’ radar for the job: two former Manitoba Moose head coaches in Scott Arniel and Pascal Vincent and two former NHL head coaches in Rick Tocchet and Jim Montgomery.

Latest On Barry Trotz

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1:45pm: Darren Dreger of TSN reports that Trotz has turned down the job in Winnipeg, deciding instead to not jump back into the coaching ring at all. The veteran coach will instead spend time with his family, meaning the Jets will need to look elsewhere.

8:25am: The coaching carousel is chugging along, with new hires in Dallas, Florida, Philadelphia, and Vegas over the last few days. The name that still hasn’t come off the board, Barry Trotz, appears to be running out of options, though four teams still remain without head coaches. Ken Wiebe of Sportsnet reports that the latest meeting between Trotz and the Winnipeg Jets happened earlier this week and it is now up to the veteran coach on whether to accept the job.

Winner of the 2018 Stanley Cup, Trotz is sometimes even more lauded for his work with the New York Islanders, turning them from one of the worst defensive teams in the NHL to one of the best over the course of a single offseason. Even if that kind of improvement isn’t entirely because of a coaching or system change, there are few who doubt Trotz can have a positive impact no matter what kind of situation he ends up in.

Interestingly enough, Wiebe also notes that the deal Winnipeg is offering includes a succession plan that would have him move to the front office at some point down the line. That kind of management role has been speculated about since Trotz hit the market, fired by the Islanders after his fourth year there.

After all, the two-time Jack Adams winner has now coached more than 1,800 regular season games in a long career, trailing only Scotty Bowman on the all-time list. At some point, a transition out from behind the bench seems inevitable, and what better place than his hometown club.

Still, there are some other attractive openings. The Detroit Red Wings, for instance, have a young impressive group that looks like it will be contending in a few years, and might be ripe for a veteran coach to push them over the edge. Whether Detroit, Boston, or Chicago have a realistic chance (or interest) in Trotz at this point isn’t clear but Winnipeg has made him a top priority from the beginning. Now it’s up to him to decide whether he’s going back home.

Florida Panthers Hire Paul Maurice

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5:33 pm: The Panthers have made Maurice’s hiring official. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports that it’s a three-year deal for Maurice, coming in at just under $4MM per season. In a release announcing the news, general manager Bill Zito gave the following explanation:

At the completion of our season, we began an in-depth examination of all aspects of our team. After taking the appropriate amount of time for analysis, we determined that we needed the perfect fit to continue with the growth of our players and stay on the path for our franchise goals. Paul’s experience and intellect were just what we were looking for and we are thrilled for him to step into the role of head coach.

9:14 am: The Florida Panthers won’t be keeping Andrew Brunette on as head coach after all. Several reports have surfaced including from Darren Dreger of TSN that the Panthers are in the process of hiring Paul Maurice as their next head coach, and that it will be a three-year deal when completed. Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic adds that Brunette could still remain with the organization in some fashion, though Dreger expects him to look for a fresh start.

Maurice, 55, resigned his position as head coach of the Winnipeg Jets in December, noting that the team needed a new voice after nearly a decade there. One of the most experienced coaches in NHL history, Maurice was hired by the Hartford Whalers when he was still just 28 years old and has been behind a bench ever since, racking up 1,685 regular season games in the process.

Despite those decades of coaching though, Maurice doesn’t have a ton of postseason success, having only progressed past the first round on four occasions and missing the playoffs entirely in more than half his seasons behind the bench. His best playoff run came in 2002 when he took the Carolina Hurricanes to the Stanley Cup Final, only to lose in five games to the Detroit Red Wings.

Still, there are few coaches more well-respected around the league than Maurice, and he’ll now be walking into an outstanding opportunity with the Panthers. Florida won the Presidents’ Trophy with a 58-18-6 scoring at a pace rarely seen in the modern game. Four players cracked the 30-goal mark, with captain Aleksander Barkov leading the way with 39 in just 67 games. Jonathan Huberdeau had 115 points to finish second in the Art Ross race, and the Panthers have difference-makers at defense and in net.

That success though is why so many believed Brunette would be given another chance after taking over from Joel Quenneville early in the year. Fifty-one of those 58 wins came under the rookie bench boss, who posted a .720 points percentage in his first go-round.

There were critiques of his ability in the playoffs when going up against Jon Cooper and the Tampa Bay Lightning, who swept them out of the second round, but it was still hard to believe Brunette wouldn’t be given at least another crack at it.

By moving on to Maurice, the management group in Florida has made a clear statement that they believe there is no time to waste in their current window. Notably, Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar will be unrestricted free agents after the upcoming season, Sam Reinhart and Anthony Duclair will be the year after that, and Aaron Ekblad, Sam Bennett, and Carter Verhaeghe the year after that.

The 2022-23 season could be the last chance for the entire group to stay intact (or at least reasonably intact), so they’ve taken their shot with an experienced coach to try and take them all the way.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

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