Most recently the interim head coach of the New Jersey Devils, Travis Green was hired by the Ottawa ... [+]
The NHL’s coaching carousel continues to spin at breakneck speed.
On Tuesday, two official hires were announced. After closing out the season as interim head coach of the New Jersey Devils, Travis Green was introduced as the new head coach of the Ottawa Senators.
The 53-year-old will be tasked with getting the Senators back on track after a disappointing first year under new owner Michael Andlauer, which started with aspirations of snapping a six-season playoff drought but ended with a 26th-place finish in the standings.
“After speaking to several highly qualified candidates, it became clear that Travis is the right fit to lead our group,” said Ottawa hockey operations president and general manager Steve Staios. “As we’ve routinely stated, developing a winning culture is paramount to our aspiration of achieving sustained success. Travis has a burning desire to win, is passionate about teaching and holds his players to a very high standard.”
A veteran of 970 games as a player, Green’s NHL coaching resume is hightlighted by his four-plus seasons as head coach of the Vancouver Canucks. There, he went 133-147-34 over 314 games, for a .478 points percentage. Vancouver’s only playoff appearance during his tenure came in the 2020 pandemic bubble, where the young team exceeded expectations by knocking off the defending champion St. Louis Blues, then taking the Vegas Golden Knights to seven games in the second round.
Drew Bannister has parlayed his interim head-coaching job into a permanent position with the St. ... [+]
Also on Tuesday, the St. Louis Blues confirmed that they have removed the interim tag from Drew Bannister, who has been behind their bench since Dec. 12, 2o23. After being promoted from the head job with the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds, 50-year-old Bannister coached the Blues to a 30-19-5 record over 54 games, for a .605 points percentage that would have pro-rated to 99 points over a full season — good enough to have gotten St. Louis into a playoff spot.
Bannister’s contract extension is for two years.
Also, back on April 22, the Buffalo Sabres filled their coaching void by bringing back a beloved figure in their marketplace, Lindy Ruff. Now 64, Ruff patrolled the Buffalo blue line for 10 years as a rugged defender. He then spent 15 years as the Sabres’ head coach, between 1997 and 2013, responsible for taking the team to the Stanley Cup Final in 1999 and for its last playoff appearance, back in 2011.
Ruff became available after being fired by the Devils on Mar. 4 — where Green then took over. The Sabres brought him on board just six days after parting ways with Don Granato.
Still with me?
That means head job in New Jersey is now officially vacant.
The juiciest rumor to surface over the last couple of weeks is that the Devils asked for permission to speak to Pittsburgh Penguins bench boss Mike Sullivan. He’s the league’s second-longest-tenured head coach, in Pittsburgh since 2015, and won Stanley Cups there in 2016 and 2017. And while he signed a three-year contract extension in 2022 for a reported $5.5 million a season that doesn’t even begin until the 2024-25 season, the Penguins have now missed the playoffs for the last two years and are at a bit of a crossroads, even as their 36-year-old captain, Sidney Crosby, continues to perform a a very high level.
The Penguins denied having been asked for, or granted, permission for the Devils — or any other team — to speak to Sullivan.
According to TSN’s Pierre LeBrun, the Devils are aiming to have their new coach in place within the next seven to 10 days.
There are also openings in San Jose, where David Quinn was let go on Apr. 24, in Winnipeg, where 69-year-old Rick Bowness announced his retirement on Monday, and in Seattle, where 2023 coach of the year finalist Dave Hakstol was fired on Apr. 29 after three seasons.
A strong possibility in Seattle is Dan Bylsma, who won a Stanley Cup as coach of the Penguins in 2009. For the last two seasons, he has been very successful as the coach of Seattle’s AHL affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds. In 2023, he got the new expansion team to overtime of Game 7 of the Calder Cup Final. Then, after taking the Western Conference Title in the 2024 regular season, the Firebirds are also still alive in the playoffs.
Bylsma’s clearest connection to the Kraken is through assistant general manager Jason Botterill. He worked in the Penguins’ front office during Bylsma’s time there.
For now, a couple of other situations remain unclear.
The Los Angeles Kings have not yet made a final decision on whether or not to retain Jim Hiller, who took over as interim head coach when Todd McLellan was fired on Feb. 2. Over 34 games, Hiller’s record was 21-12-1, a .632 points percentage, but the Kings disappointed in the playoffs by losing to the Edmonton Oilers in five games.
The status of Sheldon Keefe in Toronto is also uncertain after the Maple Leafs’ latest playoff disappointment, a seven-game loss to the Boston Bruins. After just one playoff series win in eight years — and with Keith Pelley taking over as the new CEO of the Leafs’ parent company, Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, in April — change is expected this summer. But it’s not yet clear exactly what form that change will take. Leafs’ management is set to meet the media on Friday.
Ryan Smith laughs as he speaks during a news conference at the Delta Center on April 19, 2024 in ... [+]
One market where change is not expected is in Utah, where new owner Ryan Smith has made it clear that he values the expertise of incoming Arizona Coyotes general manager Bill Armstrong and coach Andre Tourigny.
The terms of the unusual deal dictate that Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo retains all the intellectual property around the club, including its logo, trademarks, and record book.
In essence, the assets that Smith has purchased are the players and the team staff.
“Since we’re only acquiring the people, we need the people,” he said pointedly at NHL Utah’s introductory press conference in Salt Lake City on Apr. 19.
