During Monday’s season ticket holder conference call, GM George McPhee sounded like a man who’s impatiently waiting for late June.
We’ll be ready for the expansion draft and the entry draft. In fact I think we’re ready now.. -George McPhee, General Manager
If you missed it or aren’t quite rich enough to have fancy pants season tickets, check out the SinBin.vegas Twitter timeline as Ken live-tweeted out the full conference call. Without giving too much away, McPhee gave a few notes of interest, especially, an answer to a coaching question. We still stand by Jack Capuano as the front-runner and his comment leads us again to the former Islanders coach.
Let’s get to the hidden information McPhee might’ve tried to slip by us. On a question about finding the Golden Knights first head coach. The GM stated he wants a coach that knows the present-day players, rules and styles. Most importantly, here’s the big clue, he also would like to hire someone he knows.
We want someone who is very current on the game, who’s progressive. I’ve had the opportunity to work with lots of coaches in the NHL. Had great experiences in the world championships working with several NHL coaches. So, we know who’s out there. We decided way back in August, that we were going to take our time and interview along the way. – GM George McPhee
McPhee said it, he’s worked with a lot of NHL coaches. Here’s the list:
| Coach | When With McPhee | Currently With | Tenure | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ron Wilson | WSH Head Coach (1997-2002) | N/A | 410 Games | 192-159-51 |
| Bruce Cassidy | WSH Head Coach (2002-2004) | Boston (Interim) | 110 Games | 47-47-9 |
| Randy Carlyle | WSH Assistant Coach (2002-2004) | Anaheim (HC) | 164 Games | 64-75-18 |
| Glen Hanlon | WSH Head Coach (2003-2008) | GM Vancouver Giants (WHL) | 239 Games | 79-122-9 |
| Bruce Boudreau | WSH Head Coach (2008-2012) | Minnesota (HC) | 329 Games | 208-104-40 |
| Jack Capuano | NYI Head Coach (2015) *Only Season McPhee w/New York | N/A | 82 Games | 45-27-10 |
| Doug Weight | Sr. Advisor to GM and Isles Asst. Coach (2015) | New York Islanders (Interim) | 29 Games | 16-9-4 |
| Bill Peters | IIHF Team Canada Head Coach (2014-Pres) | Carolina (HC) | 164 Games | 65-72-27 |
| Dave Cameron | IIHF Team Canada Assistant Coach (2014-2016) | Calgary (Asst) | 137 Games | 70-50-17 |
| Mike Yeo | IIHF Team Canada Assistant Coach | St. Louis (HC) | 370 Games | 187-139-44 |
As you can see, McPhee has worked with plenty of NHL head coaches past and present. Cassidy, Carlyle, Boudreau, Weight, Peters and Yeo are all current NHL head coaches. Capuano was fired earlier this season, and Cameron was let go after last season. Hanlon and Wilson haven’t been NHL head coaches in some time so it’s safe to eliminate them. Carlyle, Boudreau and Yeo are all safely employed. Which leaves Capuano, Cassidy, Weight, Peters and Cameron.
