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Metropolitan Notes: Penguins Coaching, Roest, Kuokkanen

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The Pittsburgh Penguins’ coaching search continues to headline news out of the Metropolitan Division, as the squad seeks out their first change at head coach in the last decade. Their final rounds of interviews have led to two candidates emerging above the rest – Washington Capitals assistant coach Mitch Love, and former Ottawa Senators head coach D.J. Smith, per David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period.

Love has been behind the Capitals’ bench for the last two seasons, after spending the two years prior serving as the head coach of Calgary’s AHL squad. Love worked in the WHL and Canada’s U17 and U18 squads for the better half of the 2010’s. He supported Team Canada’s Gold Medal wins at the 2016 U17 World Hockey Championship, 2019 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, and 2020 World Junior Championship. He also won the AHL’s ’Coach of the Year’ award in both of his two years in the league – 2021-22 and 2022-23. The past two years in Washington have marked Love’s first in the NHL in any capacity, and a move to head coach would mark a quick reward after he supported Pittsburgh’s rival to a second-round exit this season.

Smith sits as an interesting option opposite of Love. He has spent the last season-and-a-half in an assistant or associate coach role with the Los Angeles Kings, who hired him on the same day that he was fired from the Senators’ head coaching role in 2023. Smith posted a combined 131-154-32 record in just over four years with the Senators. He also has six years of experience as an NHL assistant coach, spread between tenures with the Toronto Maple Leafs and L.A. Kings. He’d be a hotly debated addition, though offers a much hardier pro coaching resume than Love.

Other notes from the Metro Division:

  • The Tampa Bay Lightning have parted ways with assistant general manager and AHL general manager Stacy Roest, per Ashley Wenskoski of CNY Central. Roest was a colleague of freshly-hired New York Islanders general manager Mathieu Darche during their shared time in Tampa Bay, and could be a candidate to join their front office. Roest has been with the Tampa Bay organization since the 2013-14 season, when he joined on as a Director of Player Development and AHL assistant coach. He was promoted to AHL GM in the 2019-20 season. Roest also played in 244 career games in the NHL, split between tenures with the Detroit Red Wings and Minnesota Wild. He ended his career with nine years in Switzerland’s National League, which allowed him to support Team Canada at six separate Spengler Cups.
  • Former Carolina Hurricanes and New Jersey Devils centerman Janne Kuokkanen has extended his tenure overseas. He has signed a four-year contract with the SHL’s Malmo Redhawks. Kuokkanen played one season with Malmo in 2023-24 – scoring 44 points in 43 games – but opted to move to the National League for this season. He’ll reverse that decision one season later, after netting just 25 points in 35 games with Lausanne HC. Kuokkanen was a second-round selection in the 2016 NHL Draft and played in 119 NHL games split between the Hurricanes and Devils. He scored 14 goals and 42 points in those appearances.

Snapshots: Karlsson, Love, Kolosov

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With a free agent market that isn’t particularly deep for right-shot defensemen, league sources tell Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli that there’s an expectation that Penguins blueliner Erik Karlsson could be in play this summer.  The soon-to-be-35-year-old has put up 109 points in his two seasons with Pittsburgh, well above average although far below the 101 he tallied in his final year with San Jose.  Meanwhile, his defensive game has continued to be inconsistent which could have GM Kyle Dubas looking to move him to shake up his team.  Karlsson has two years left on his contract at $10MM per season (with the Sharks contributing $1.5MM more as part of the trade two summers ago) and the Penguins would undoubtedly need to pay that down to find a suitable trade for his services.

Elsewhere around the NHL:

  • The Kraken appeared to be getting close to hiring Washington assistant coach Mitch Love as their new head coach, according to Daily Faceoff’s Anthony Di Marco. However, those talks apparently stalled at the finish line.  He relays that there may be a condition for the new bench boss to retain assistant Jessica Campbell which could be a deterrent to potential candidates who might want to bring in their own preferred group of assistants.  Love is a speculative finalist for both the Pittsburgh and Boston openings as well so things falling apart late could also be a sign that a better offer came from one of the other teams.
  • After not reporting to Philadelphia’s AHL affiliate after the regular season ended, many wondered if goaltender Aleksei Kolosov could be looking to return to the KHL. Sport-Express’ Artur Khairullin recently reported that the 23-year-old is expected to return to Dynamo Minsk next season, even though he’s under contract with the Flyers through next June.  Kolosov played in a dozen games with Lehigh Valley early in the year and got into 17 more games with Philadelphia the rest of the way but struggled, posting a 3.59 GAA and a .867 SV% in those outings.  With Kolosov on an NHL deal next season, the logistics of Kolosov returning to the KHL will need to be worked out, either by a mutual termination if Philadelphia is willing or his deal could ultimately be tolled at the NHL level.

Atlantic Notes: Peterka, Woodcroft, Panthers

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In his new trade board entering the offseason, Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff opines that Buffalo Sabres forward JJ Peterka is the top trade target. Peterka tied for second in scoring among Sabres players this season and will become a restricted free agent on July 1st.

Seravalli writes that several teams put together offers at the trade deadline for Peterka, but Buffalo General Manager Kevyn Adams had no interest in trading him. Despite Seravalli’s claim that a ’change of scenery’ is in order, it’s difficult to imagine the Sabres moving on from one of their top forwards this summer.

Still, Peterka has come into his own over the last two years, scoring 55 goals and 118 points in 159 games, with 93 of those points coming at even strength. It is reasonable to assume that Buffalo would receive a generous offer for Peterka, but he seems like a player the team should want to keep around for the long term. According to PuckPedia, the Sabres will have more than $23MM entering the offseason, giving them plenty of flexibility to seek a long-term contract with Peterka.

Other notes from the Atlantic Division:

  • Despite Washington Capitals assistant coach Mitch Love and Ontario Reign head coach Marco Sturm being labelled as the finalists for the Boston Bruins head coaching vacancy, Jimmy Murphy of RG has heard otherwise. Murphy posited that the Bruins have already begun ’talking money’ with coaching candidate Jay Woodcroft, but admits that Love and Sturm are still in the mix. There have not been other specific indications that the Bruins are negotiating a deal with Woodcroft, as the situation regarding the Bruins’ head coaching remains very uncertain.
  • In a humorous and candid quote, Florida Panthers head coach Paul Maurice describes the contrast between his team’s behaviour on the ice and off the ice. Giving most of the credit to captain Aleksander Barkov, Michael Russo of The Athletic writes about the Panthers’ tenacity, and sometimes dirty play during games, and their stout humility and respect in between puck drops. Recognizing this, Russo quoted Maurice, saying, “Have you ever shotgunned a beer? Have you ever been to church? Would you shotgun a beer in church? That doesn’t make you a hypocrite. There’s a context and a place for all things.“

Bruins Have Interviewed Jay Leach, Mitch Love, Luke Richardson For Head Coach Job

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The Bruins have had several external candidates linked to their head coaching vacancy for several weeks since the regular season ended. Today, Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic confirmed they’ve held initial interviews with most of the names already mentioned. Still, he added that they’d also considered promoting assistant coach Jay Leach to the head job. They’ve also interviewed Capitals assistant Mitch Love and former Blackhawks bench boss Luke Richardson, LeBrun adds.

LeBrun’s report comes after general manager Don Sweeney told Steve Conroy of the Boston Herald earlier this week that they’re entering the final stages of their search and are narrowing their list of candidates to make a hire in the next couple of weeks. Other previously known candidates who haven’t been snapped up elsewhere are former Bruins winger and current AHL Ontario head coach Marco Sturm, ex-Oilers bench boss Jay Woodcroft, and interim head coach Joe Sacco, LeBrun confirms.

It’s not the first time the Bruins have interviewed Leach to be their head coach. He was a finalist for their vacancy in 2022 before they ended up hiring Jim Montgomery, but they got him anyway last summer as an assistant after he spent three years in the same role with the Kraken.

Boston faces competition from the Penguins on many of the names here. Pittsburgh has also reportedly interviewed Leach, Love, and Woodcroft throughout their process. That’s likely a factor in the Bruins wanting to get their search wrapped up sooner rather than later, so they can ensure the Pens don’t take their first choice.

Leach spent a few years in the Boston organization in the NHL and AHL during his playing days, and is now in his second stint with the club as a coach. He was previously the head coach of AHL Providence from 2017 to 2021.

Love, meanwhile, is now connected to all three remaining head coach openings, including the Kraken, after the Blackhawks concluded their search with the hiring of Jeff Blashill today. After receiving some interest for head coach openings in the 2023 hiring cycle but ending up in an assistant role in Washington, he’s one of the top candidates this time around. The 40-year-old would be a first time head coach in the NHL but has experience in the top coaching role with the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades (2018-2021) and the AHL’s Stockton Heat/Calgary Wranglers (2021-2023), where he won Coach of the Year honors in each of his two seasons behind the bench.

They’re not facing any known competition on Richardson, though. It’s the first time he’s been linked to a head coaching job since the Blackhawks fired him in December following an 8-16-2 start to the campaign. The 56-year-old compiled a 57-118-15 (.339) record in parts of three seasons behind the bench for a rebuilding Chicago club.

Kraken Linked To Lane Lambert, Mitch Love, David Quinn For Head Coach Opening

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Outside of Rick Tocchet, who landed with the Flyers, there haven’t been many names firmly connected to the Kraken’s head coach vacancy. That changed today when TSN’s Darren Dreger reported they’ve received permission from the Maple Leafs to interview assistant coach Lane Lambert for their head coach role. They’ve also displayed interest in Capitals assistant Mitch Love and Penguins assistant David Quinn, Dreger adds.

It won’t be Lambert’s first go-around as a head coach if he wins the race. The 60-year-old was tabbed as the Isles’ bench boss ahead of the 2022-23 season after four years there as an associate coach. He lasted less than two full seasons there and was replaced by Patrick Roy near the midpoint of the 2023-24 campaign. After finishing the year without a job, he served as Craig Berube’s associate coach in Toronto this year.

Love and Quinn have both been tied to Pittsburgh’s head coach opening as well, with the former as the favorite by all indications. Love has spent the last two years in Washington under 2025 Jack Adams Award nominee Spencer Carbery, his first job on an NHL bench. The 40-year-old has made quick work of his jump up from the junior ranks to the NHL. In his brief two-year stop in the AHL as head coach of Calgary’s affiliate, he won Coach of the Year honors in both seasons.

Quinn is the most known commodity of the trio, something that may work against him in the end for a Seattle club looking to vault upward out of a pair of slightly sub-.500 finishes. Across stops with the Rangers and Sharks over the past six years, the 58-year-old had just a 137-185-50 (.435) record. He’s spent just one year with Pittsburgh, his lone campaign as an assistant in the NHL.

Seattle’s on the hunt for the third head coach in franchise history after they fired Dan Bylsma in April following just one season behind the bench. They’re one of the four active vacancies remaining, although that list is expected to drop to three soon with the Blackhawks on the verge of hiring Lightning assistant and former Red Wings head coach Jeff Blashill. Alongside Pittsburgh, the Bruins are also looking for a new coach.

Latest On Penguins’ Head Coaching Search

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In addition to considering Kings assistant D.J. Smith in their search for a new head coach, the Penguins are also interested in Capitals assistant Mitch Love and former Blues coach Drew Bannister as they look to fill their head coaching job, according to Josh Yohe of The Athletic (article link).

It seems clear Washington anticipates Love drawing interest for multiple of the remaining vacancies this offseason and isn’t expecting him back. While the team is still active in the postseason, they’ve granted Pittsburgh permission to interview Love – something that’s already happened and has vaulted him onto the “short list of favorites for the job,” Yohe writes.

There haven’t been many other candidates firmly linked to the Penguins’ open position outside of Rick Tocchet, who signed a reported five-year contract with the Flyers yesterday. Talks didn’t progress past a casual stage between Tocchet and general manager Kyle Dubas regarding the Pittsburgh vacancy, according to Yohe.

“Tocchet wants to win, and he wants to win now,” Yohe added. “You can argue about how close the Flyers are to winning. But the Flyers are further along in their rebuild than the Penguins are. Tocchet didn’t want to find himself in a situation where struggling in the first couple of seasons was OK because the franchise is building. He wants to win now and wasn’t certain that the Penguins are ready for that.”

As for the three named candidates, the writing on the wall indicates Love is Pittsburgh’s preferred name. He’s spent the last two seasons with the Capitals as an assistant under Spencer Carbery and drew interest for head coaching jobs. He was a head coaching candidate in the 2023 hiring cycle after winning back-to-back Coach of the Year awards with the AHL’s Stockton Heat/Calgary Wranglers, but lost out. Now 40, the British Columbia native has had the chance to acclimate to an NHL bench under a Jack Adams Award finalist and presents himself as a more attractive candidate this time.

Regarding Bannister, the former NHL defenseman finished 2023-24 as the Blues’ interim head coach and was given the permanent job last summer along with a two-year contract. His early-season departure was less to do with St. Louis’ 9-12-1 record out of the gate and more with Jim Montgomery unexpectedly becoming available for hire when the Bruins canned him in November. Like Love, the last two seasons were Bannister’s only ones behind an NHL bench in any capacity. His previous coaching experience came with the Blues’ AHL affiliate and the OHL’s Owen Sound Attack and Soo Greyhounds.

With Dubas in Sweden as Canada’s general manager for the World Championship and his open-minded approach to the search, there’s an expectation the Penguins’ search stretches into the latter days of May, Yohe adds.

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