Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde and goalie coach Alex Westlund were added to Team USA coaching staff for the upcoming IIHF Men's World Championships
Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde and goalie coach Alex Westlund were added to Team USA coaching staff for the upcoming IIHF Men's World Championships
Detroit Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde and goalie coach Alex Westlund were added to Team USA coaching staff for the upcoming IIHF Men's World Championships.
Lalonde will serve as an assistant coach, while Westlund will work as a goalie coach joining Red Wings forward Dylan Larkin and goaltender Alex Lyon on the team. The two coaches will work under Minnesota Wild coach John Hynes, who was named head coach last week. The tournament, held in Switzerland this year, begins May 10 and runs through May 26.
Lalonde is no stranger to the international stage. He worked as an assistant coach last year under David Quinn, who was recently fired as the San Jose Sharks' coach. That 2023 team earned the first overall seed in the tournament bracket, but it lost a 4-3 overtime stunner to a less established Team Germany, led by Red Wings defensemen Moritz Seider. The 2023 Americans also fell short in the bronze medal game, losing 4-3 to Latvia in another overtime upset.
When asked last week, Lalonde said he thought it was too late for USA Hockey to hire him for the tournament given how late Detroit's just-short playoff push went into their selection process.
"I obviously understand the fact that we hung in so long, I may have probably taken myself out of potential on the coaching side," Lalonde said April 19. "You know, they have those things planned a little more in advance to this. But if they call, I'll go 100%. I never said no to USA Hockey and I never will. If they need me, I will be going to that tournament."
Suffice it to say that USA Hockey called, and now Lalonde will look to help the team avenge its shortcomings last season.
Westlund will work with Lyon, who he coached this year in the goalie coach’s second year in Detroit. This is Westlund’s first time coaching for USA Hockey.
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