Who Are The Best Candidates For The Vacant Head Coaching Job?
With new GM Don Waddell letting Pascal Vincent go, the speculation on who will be the coach must start. Reports, and common sense, suggest that Waddell wants someone with previous NHL experience. So who's available? Let's take a look.
The Most Talked-About
Todd McLellan - NHL - 598-412-134 - 1,144 Games with the La Kings, Edmonton Oilers, and San Jose Sharks. Nine playoff appearances.
Jeff Blashill - NHL - 204-261-72 - 537 Games with the Detroit Red Wings. One playoff appearance. He has also coached 390 games in the AHL and USHL.
Jay Woodcroft - NHL - 79-41-13 - 133 Games with the Edmonton Oilers. Two playoff appearances.
Dean Evason - NHL - 147-77-27 - 251 Games with the Minnesota Wild. Four playoff appearances. 456 games in the AHL including four playoff appearances. He also has coached 432 games in the WHL with six playoff appearances.
Todd Nelson - NHL - 17-25-9 - 51 Games with the Edmonton Oilers. Zero playoff appearances. But, Nelson is a winner in the minor leagues. He has coached 608 games in the AHL and has won two Calder Cups. He has his Hershey Bears in the Calder Cup Finals this season as well, getting there by beating the Cleveland Monsters. He also won Back-to-back Colonial Cups for the IHL's Muskegon Fury.
Gerard Gallant - NHL - 369-262-4-70 - 705 Games with the Columbus Blue Jackets, Florida Panthers, Vegas Golden Knights, and New York Rangers. Five playoff appearances. Could Gallant get a second stint in Columbus? He coached in Columbus from 2003-07 and finished 20 games under .500.
The Wild Cards
Trent Vogelhuber - AHL - 73-56-0-5 - 144 Games with the Cleveland Monsters. One playoff appearance. The Vogelhuber-led Monsters made the Eastern Conference Finals in this year's playoffs, and despite being down 3-0 to the Hershey Bears, stormed back to force a game 7, only to fall in overtime. Vogelhuber's name is constantly brought up as someone the Columbus organization shouldn't let walk. He has no experience coaching in the NHL, but his Monsters did really well under his leadership, despite being the youngest team in the AHL. Many think he should be elevated as an assistant in Columbus no matter who they hire.
Bob Hartley - NHL - 463-361-61-59 - 944 Games with the Colorado Avalanche, Atlanta Thrashers, and Calgary Flames. Six playoff appearances and one Stanley Cup with Colorado. Hartley also won a Gagarin Cup in the KHL in 2021. He won an AHL title with Hershey in 1997, and in 2012 his ZSC Lions won the Swiss championship.
The speculation as to who Waddell will hire will continue, and THN Columbus will keep you updated.
What do you think? Please share your thoughts on our forum.
More From THN Columbus