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Peter Laviolette

East Notes: Muse, Housley, Sanderson

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The new head coach of the New York Rangers, Peter Laviolette, is working diligently on getting the rest of his bench filled out for the upcoming season. In the last 36 hours, one name has already been inked, as former player Michael Peca will be brought on to serve as an assistant coach.

Adding to that list, Mollie Walker of the New York Post reports that Dan Muse will also be brought on to serve as an assistant coach on the Rangers’ bench. This will not be Muse’s first shot in the NHL, as he served under Laviolette with the Nashville Predators from 2017-20.

Since then, Muse has been serving as head coach of the United States U18 team, coaching the team to a gold medal finish last April in Switzerland. Adding to his winning pedigree before his time in Nashville, Muse was also an assistant coach for Yale University from 2009-2015, helping his team win the 2013 Men’s Ice Hockey National Championship against Quinnipiac University.

Other notes:

  • Like Muse, there may be another former Nashville coach joining Laviolette in the Big Apple, as Lance Lysowski of the Buffalo News reports that Laviolette has interest in bringing in Phil Housley. After his time in Nashville came to end in 2017, Housley signed on with the Buffalo Sabres as head coach, only to be fired after his second year. Currently employed as an assistant coach for the Arizona Coyotes, Housley is most well known for his 21-year career in the NHL, scoring a total of 1,232 points in 1,495 career games.
  • Ottawa Senators defenseman, Jake Sanderson, has switched agents, now being represented by mega-agent Pat Brisson of CAA Hockey (Tweet Link). Although under contract already with the Senators, the change could mean a lot for Sanderson this summer. Entering the last season of his entry-level contract signed back in 2022, Sanderson could sign a long-term extension with Ottawa this offseason.

New York Rangers To Hire Mike Peca

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Wake up, Mike, you’re headed to the Big Apple. Late last night Jeff Marek of Sportsnet reported that Mike Peca will be joining the New York Rangers coaching staff. Peca will be on the bench as an assistant alongside Peter Laviolette.

The former NHL forward has spent nearly his entire career in the state of New York. Captain of both the Buffalo Sabres and New York Islanders during his playing days, he then joined the Buffalo Jr. Sabres in a managerial and coaching role, before serving as an assistant with the Rochester Americans the last two seasons.

Though he never played for the Rangers, he’ll be familiar with the coaching style of his new boss. Laviolette was Peca’s coach with the Islanders for two years, including during his career-best 60-point campaign in 2001-02, after being given the captaincy.

In all, Peca registered 465 points in 864 NHL games, while taking home the Selke Trophy as the league’s best defensive forward on two occasions. This will be his first NHL coaching role.

Snapshots: Murphy, Tkachuk, Michkov

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While the New York Rangers filled the final head coaching vacancy in the league today, officially hiring Peter Laviolette, their offseason work is far from over. The Rangers and Laviolette will need to fill out the rest of his staff, which, per The New York Post’s Mollie Walker, will not include assistant coach Gord Murphy.

Goalie coach Benoit Allaire will be the only returning member from last year’s coaching staff. The Rangers relieved former head coach Gerard Gallant’s other assistants, Mike Kelly and Jim Midgley, early last month.

Murphy had been on the Rangers’ staff only as long as Gallant had: two seasons. He was an internal promotion, though, spending two years with the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack as an associate head coach from 2019 to 2021. The long-time NHL defender and father of Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Connor Murphy, Gord also spent lengthy stints with the Columbus Blue Jackets, Florida Panthers, and Philadelphia Flyers as an assistant.

More from around the league today:

  • Florida Panthers head coach Paul Maurice offered no update on the status of star winger Matthew Tkachuk before tonight’s do-or-die Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final. Tkachuk has not practiced with the team since their Game 4 loss, and his availability for tonight remains up in the air after a hard hit from Vegas Golden Knights forward Keegan Kolesar in Game 3. Already without the services of Eetu Luostarinen at forward as well, either Givani Smith or Grigori Denisenko could slot into the lineup tonight if Tkachuk can’t go. Smith played just over five minutes in one game during the First Round against Boston, while it would be Denisenko’s playoff debut.
  • Yesterday, reporting indicated that early presumptive top-two pick Matvei Michkov could fall completely out of the top 10 choices when the 2023 NHL Draft occurs this month. Today, The Athletic’s Corey Pronman spoke to a panel of anonymous NHL executives and scouts about a myriad of topics, including the perception of Michkov around the league. Multiple executives and scouts still had Michkov pegged in the top two or three spots in the draft, even considering his contract situation and the Russian geopolitical climate. Others were harsher on his play, with one scout saying, “you have a [5-foot-9] not-amazing-skating, average-compete winger.” What did appear clear in the responses, though, was that the extraneous factors surrounding Michkov’s development and NHL future weren’t a huge concern.

New York Rangers Hire Peter Laviolette

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June 13: The New York Post reported the New York Rangers were expected to name Laviolette their head coach today, and an official announcement from the team came in minutes later. General manager Chris Drury offered a statement:

We are thrilled that Peter will be the next Head Coach of the New York Rangers. With Peter’s extensive experience as a Head Coach in the National Hockey League, as well as the success his teams have had at several levels throughout his career, we are excited about what the future holds with him leading our team.

June 12: Shortly after the Calgary Flames named Ryan Huska their 21st head coach in franchise history, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that the New York Rangers are prepared to name their 44th. Although nothing is officially complete now, Friedman writes that Peter Laviolette will man the bench for the Rangers next season unless something dramatic changes.

In just over two years spent as head coach of New York, the Rangers recently let go of head coach Gerard Gallant. In those two seasons spent in New York, Gallant coached the Rangers to a 99-46-19 record, losing in the Eastern Conference Finals in 2022, and the first round of the playoffs in 2023. Coaching a team currently constructed as a Stanley Cup contender, the lack of playoff success likely pushed Gallant out the door.

About two weeks before Gallant’s exit in New York, Laviolette was also shown the door by his former employer, the Washington Capitals. Also coaching a team with expectations of playoff success, the Capitals finished this season with a 35-37-10 record and missed the playoffs entirely. After coaching in the United States Capital for three seasons, Laviolette finished his career in Washington with a coaching record of 115-78-27, including two first-round exits.

Although Gallant was able to coach the upstart Vegas Golden Knights to the 2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Laviolette is much more of a proven winner as a head coach. His first head coaching job in the NHL came all the way back during the 2001-02 season, coaching the New York Islanders for two seasons. Finishing his Islanders’ tenure with a 77-62-19-6 record, Laviolette was able to get the Islanders to the playoffs in back-to-back seasons.

After the Carolina Hurricanes fired then-head coach Paul Maurice after the 2002-03 season, Laviolette quickly joined on as head coach to replace him. Spending five seasons in Carolina, Laviolette’s stay with the Hurricanes was somewhat of a mixed bag. He only finished with a slight winning percentage, going 167-122-6-28, and missed the playoffs three times, having been fired midway through the 2008-09 season. Minus the playoff exits, Laviolette was able to coach the Hurricanes to their first Stanley Cup championship in franchise history during the 2006 NHL Playoffs.

Although his tenure in Carolina was a mixed bag, after joining the Philadelphia Flyers as head coach before the 2009-10 season, Laviolette got off to a quick start. The Flyers made the 2010 Stanley Cup Finals but ultimately lost to the Chicago Blackhawks in six games. The following two seasons, the Flyers would be knocked out in the semi-finals in back-to-back years, but still finished as one of the better teams in the Eastern Conference.

After missing the playoffs entirely during the 2012-13 season, Laviolette was quickly dismissed after only three games into the 2014-15 season, not returning to the NHL for the rest of the year. Before the start of the 2014-15 season, Laviolette was named the new head coach of the Nashville Predators. For the first time since his stay with the Islanders, Laviolette was able to coach the Predators to the playoffs every year spent as head coach (before his firing during the 2019-20 season). The most notable playoff appearance in Nashville came during the 2016-17 season, as the team made the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time in franchise history, losing to the Pittsburgh Penguins in six games.

In all, Laviolette has coached his team to the playoffs 13 times and missed the playoffs only five times after 18 full seasons of coaching. He has appeared in the Stanley Cup Finals three times, and his only successful one came with the Hurricanes back in 2006. The Rangers will become the fifth team that Laviolette has coached within the NHL’s Metropolitan Division.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Coaching Notes: Gallant, Laviolette, Carbery

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The offseason coaching carousel continues, with Andrew Brunette taking over for the Nashville Predators today. That puts another experienced head coach on the market in John Hynes, adding to a long list of candidates for any vacancies.

Here’s a rundown of notes from Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic, on upcoming (and past) interviews:

  • The Calgary Flames have contacted former New York Rangers head coach Gerard Gallant, who will be part of an extensive interview process as they look to replace the outgoing Darryl Sutter. Gallant has had great success in all his head coaching roles but has never made it through a third season with the same team.
  • The Rangers are expected to meet with Peter Laviolette again today as they look to replace Gallant. Hynes has also been linked to the New York job, suggesting they’ll go with another experienced name after parting ways with Gallant earlier this month.
  • Laviolette’s replacement with the Washington Capitals, Spencer Carbery, also interviewed with the Predators, according to LeBrun. As shown by the hiring of Brunette, Nashville was clearly willing to go with less experience; Carbery will be getting his first NHL head coaching opportunity in Washington.

Peter Laviolette Linked To New York Rangers Coaching Vacancy

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The New York Rangers could be the first team of the 2023 offseason to fill a vacant head coaching position. Per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, well-tenured NHL bench boss Peter Laviolette is becoming the consensus pick to take over behind the Rangers bench, with a potential announcement coming next week.

Out of all the teams looking for a new head coach this offseason, the Rangers’ search has been the shortest. The team announced they’d parted ways with second-year coach Gerard Gallant on May 6.

If hired, the Rangers would be the sixth stop on Laviolette’s coaching tour. He ranks third among active coaches for seasons spent as a head coach (21), tied with current Philadelphia Flyers bench boss John Tortorella.

Laviolette, 58, himself became a free agent this summer, mutually parting ways with the Washington Capitals after three seasons as their head coach. His contract was set to expire regardless on June 30.

Undoubtedly, Laviolette is one of the most coveted options on the market. He’s got multiple deep playoff runs under his belt, and at first glance, he seems like an ideally experienced candidate to handle the New York market and lead the team into its first Stanley Cup Final since 2014.

But if you’re met with exasperation from Rangers fans when bringing up the connection, it is justified. The team’s largest issues over the past few seasons have been developing the talent they drafted to lead their retool, instead leading on their veteran stars (and goaltending) to take them to the next level.

Filip Chytil seems to be growing well into a high-end third-line center, but Alexis Lafrenière and Kaapo Kakko weren’t able to reach their peak effectiveness under two previous coaches in New York. Other top ten picks, namely Lias Andersson and Vitali Kravtsov, ended their Rangers careers as merely a blip in the stat book and now reside outside the organization.

Is Laviolette the right candidate to fix that issue and utilize the most out of depth players? The jury’s out on that one. His two previous franchises, the Capitals and Nashville Predators, are currently stagnant in their development. Nashville’s future only recently brightened thanks to a series of shrewd moves over the past few months from outgoing general manager David Poile.

There is one thing on Laviolette’s résumé that puts him ahead of a more developmental candidate or potentially an internal promotion from the team’s AHL staff in Hartford: three conference championships, all with different teams. Considering he hasn’t reached the Cup Final since 2017 with Nashville, Laviolette does seem due for another chance at Stanley after appearances in 2006 (a win with Carolina) and 2010 (a loss with Philadelphia).

Latest On Columbus Blue Jackets Coaching Search

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After firing head coach Brad Larsen last month, the Columbus Blue Jackets have embarked on an intensive search for a new head coach and goaltending coach, also needing to replace Manny Legace, whose contract was not renewed by the team. Things seem to be heating up in said search, as general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said today the interview process will continue throughout the week, with no immediate assumption of finalizing hires before Kekalainen’s departure for the IIHF Men’s World Championship on Sunday. His quote comes after reporting last weekend indicated Kekalainen wanted to have the hire finalized before then.

The Blue Jackets have a meticulous approach in mind, though, and Kekalainen told reporters today the hiring decisions might be delayed until after his return following the conclusion of the medal round on May 28. Yesterday, The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun disclosed reporting on who those hires might be.

Per LeBrun, at least three individuals have already been interviewed for the vacant coaching positions, including current associate coach Pascal Vincent, whom Kekalainen said the team was considering last week. The others are the experienced but extremely controversial Mike Babcock, who has previously coached the Anaheim Ducks, Detroit Red Wings, and Toronto Maple Leafs. Peter Laviolette, whose resume spanning five different clubs needs no introduction, including his most recent stint with the Washington Capitals, has also been interviewed, said LeBrun.

After an internal hire that didn’t pan out as they hoped with Larsen, it makes sense the Blue Jackets are swinging toward the opposite end of the spectrum in this round of coaching searches while still doing their due diligence on people familiar with the organization.

If Babcock is hired, the choice would immediately receive a fair amount of scrutiny from fans and media alike. Since he was fired by the Maple Leafs in late 2019, multiple revelations surrounding current and former NHL players alike have come forward about Babcock creating toxic playing environments, including Red Wings legends Chris Chelios and Johan Franzén and current Maple Leafs winger Mitch Marner.

Laviolette, on the other hand, maintains a solid reputation league-wide after decades’ worth of service and also boasts multiple Stanley Cup Final appearances on his résumé (2006, 2010, 2017).

Washington Capitals, Peter Laviolette Agree To Part Ways

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The Washington Capitals and head coach Peter Laviolette have mutually agreed to part ways, per a team announcement. Laviolette’s contract was set to expire on June 30th.

Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan issued the following statement regarding Laviolette’s departure:

We are grateful for Peter’s leadership and dedication to our organization for the last three seasons. Peter is a first-class individual who has represented our club with integrity and guided our team through many difficult circumstances in his tenure as our head coach. We wish him all the best moving forward.

Laviolette, 58, has guided the Capitals for the last three seasons, posting a 115-78-27 record along the way. Laviolette was hired by the Capitals after former coach Todd Reirden’s two-year tenure. The Capitals had declined since their 2018 Stanley Cup championship under Reirden, and the organization wanted to go with a bench boss with more experience to lead a resurgence.

The 2020-21 season went relatively well for Laviolette. He helped the Capitals navigate the difficulties presented by the COVID-19 pandemic and led them to a 36-15-5 record, which ranked them second in the MassMutual East Division.

His Capitals fell in the first round of the playoffs, though, and the main culprit responsible for the team’s demise was largely considered to be unreliable goaltending.

An inability to get reliable play in the crease plagued Laviolette’s second year in Washington to an even greater degree than his first. The player who started the most games for that Capitals team, Ilya Samsonov, posted a .896 save percentage and ultimately did not receive a qualifying offer in the summer. The other, Vitek Vanecek, posted a .908 save percentage but only played twice in the team’s first-round loss to the Florida Panthers, and ended up shipped to the New Jersey Devils in the offseason.

This year, significant injuries to key contributors such as John Carlson, Nicklas Backstrom, and Tom Wilson presented a significant challenge for Laviolette, and the Capitals ultimately did not have the organizational depth to cope with the extended absences of those franchise pillars.

With Alex Ovechkin chasing down Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goals record and the club desperately seeking a first and now second Stanley Cup championship, the Capitals’ front office has been operating with a win-now mentality for quite a while. While that win-now mentality ultimately fueled the team’s eight-year playoff streak, most understood that the bill would eventually need to be paid.

Eventually, it was believed, the lack of high-end prospects and the depleting pipeline of talent between Washington and their AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears, would come back to bite the Capitals. This season was the year where the cracks in the foundation of the Capitals’ organization seemed to finally show, and prompted MacLellan and the team’s front office to make a pivot in terms of priorities.

As long as Ovechkin is chasing Gretzky’s record, a traditional rebuild is surely off the table. But what MacLellan did this season showed that the organization would prioritize acquiring NHL-ready young talent. He flipped the first-rounder he acquired from Dmitry Orlov to acquire Rasmus Sandin, a 23-year-old blueliner who had an impressive 15 points in 19 games after the deal.

It seems the Capitals’ priority is now infusing the team with younger players, and affording those young players the types of on-ice opportunities that might be reserved for veterans in seasons of true Stanley Cup contention.

For Laviolette, that new organizational priority is likely not what he signed up for, and as a veteran head coach who happens to be the winningest American bench boss in NHL history, it’s unlikely that he’d be the best fit for a developmentally-minded Capitals organization moving forward.

So with his contract set to expire and the Capitals headed in a new, more youth-focused direction, Laviolette’s exit from Washington is far from a surprise. The 2006 Stanley Cup champion ultimately didn’t accomplish what he was brought into Washington to do — deliver more playoff success than the team had under Reirden — but he nonetheless deserves commendation for leading the franchise through some significant challenges. He’s likely to be a top name on the offseason coaching market, should he want to immediately jump back into a new job.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Capitals Notes: Laviolette, Oshie, Sheary, Smith

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Tarik El-Bashir of The Athletic is reporting that the Washington Capitals are preparing for a potentially big offseason in which a lot of personnel decisions will need to be made. The Capitals missed the playoffs for the first time since the 2013-14 season and while much of their 2018 Stanley Cup championship roster has moved on, some very important pieces remain.

El-Bashir reports that there is no update on the status of head coach Peter Laviolette. The veteran coach is a free agent at the end of this season and would still be in demand should he or the Capitals elect to part ways and start fresh next season. It is believed that Laviolette still has the support of many of the veterans in the Washington dressing room, but the recent stretch of games would give anyone pause as the Capitals have seemed indifferent at times. Laviolette is in his third season as the Capitals head coach and is the eighth winningest coach in NHL history. The 58-year-old has led three different organizations to the Stanley Cup final in his career, including a Stanley Cup victory in 2005-06 with the Carolina Hurricanes. However, in Washington he hasn’t been able to get the Capitals back over the hump and out of the first round.

In other Washington notes:

  • T.J. Oshie was shut down earlier this week with the same back injury that has caused him problems all season. Oshie missed a total of 22 games this year after dressing in just 44 games last season. El-Bashir writes in The Athletic that he is being told that Oshie shouldn’t require surgery on his ailing back and that he should be able to recover with rest and rehab. For his part the 36-year-old Oshie has seen his offensive production slide the last two seasons. He’s failed to reach 40 points two years in a row now after missing that number just once in the previous 12 seasons. Oshie can still score, evidenced by his 19 goals this season in 58 games, but Washington will be counting on him to stay healthy going forward, especially with two years left on his contract.
  • El-Bashir also writes in The Athletic that he expects the Capitals to move on from Conor Sheary and Craig Smith. Sheary is in his third season with Washington and has been a good depth scoring option with 37 points in 80 games. His scoring is down from last year, but the 30-year-old two-time cup winner should find an NHL job for next season as a depth forward with speed who can chip in on offence.
  • Craig Smith will also be looking for a new job this summer. The former Nashville Predator has seen his numbers fall off a cliff this season as he bounced between the Boston Bruins and Washington. The 2009 fourth round pick had topped 30 points in five straight seasons as a dependable third liner but hasn’t been able to duplicate that success this season. He is in the final year of a three-year contract he originally signed with Boston and will likely be forced to take a one-year deal around league minimum to secure an NHL job in 2023-24.

Metropolitan Notes: Laviolette, Ovechkin, Mantha, Attard

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Once the regular season ends next week, don’t expect an immediate decision on Peter Laviolette’s future in Washington.  In the latest TSN Insider Trading segment, Pierre LeBrun noted that the belief is that the Capitals will take their time to fully assess the situation while also allowing the veteran bench boss to have some time to ponder his future.  The 58-year-old has spent the last three seasons with the Caps and his contract is set to expire so he’ll need to decide if he wants to stick around or see what might be available with another team.  While this season has been a tough one, Washington still has a .588 points percentage during Laviolette’s tenure.

More from the Metropolitan:

  • Still with the Capitals, winger Alex Ovechkin is listed as a game-time decision due to an upper-body injury, relays NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti (Twitter link). The 37-year-old already has reached the 40-goal mark for the 13th time in his career to help him lead the team in scoring with 74 points in 72 games.  Meanwhile, winger Anthony Mantha will miss his second straight contest due to a lower-body injury that also kept him out of Thursday’s game in Montreal.
  • Philadelphia has returned defenseman Ronnie Attard to Lehigh Valley of the AHL, notes Bill Meltzer of the Flyers’ team site. The 24-year-old played in two games in his recall, his only one of the season.  It will be his last promotion as Meltzer adds that Attard will not be brought back up in the final week.  Attard has 30 points in 64 games with the Phantoms and will look to help them lock down a playoff spot in the coming days.

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