Detroit Red Wings players Dylan Larkin and Alex Lyon will be well familiar with at least one member of the Team USA coaching staff when the arrive for the IIHF world championship. That’s because Detroit head coach Derek Lalonde is going to be on the staff.
USA Hockey was announcing on Friday that Lalonde would be an assistant coach for the upcoming world tourney in Prague.
Lalonde, Jack Capuano of the Ottawa Senators, Ty Hennes of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Greg Moore will be serving as assistant coaches working under head coach John Hynes.
In addition, Alex Westlund of the Red Wings will serve as goaltending coach and Mike King of the Senators as video coach.
For Lalonde, it’s the second straight year he’ll be as assistant coach on the USA staff. Last year, he also coached at the worlds, where among the players on the were Red Wings prospect Carter Mazur of the Grand Rapids Griffins.
Red Wings Coach Enjoys International Stage
Lalonde has been involved with Team USA on the international stage on two other occasions. He was helping the U.S. Junior Select Team to championships in the World Junior A Challenge. Lalonde won in 2013 as head coach and as assistant coach in 2012.
He wondered at the end of the NHL regular season whether Detroit’s run for the playoffs had taken him out of consideration for a role at the worlds.
“I’ve never said no to USA Hockey and I never will,” Lalonde said. “If they need me, I will be going to the tournament.”
Red Wings captain Larkin and goaltender Lyon were announced as part of the USA squad earlier this week.
It’s the sixth world tourney for Larkin. He’s previously been there in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019. Lyon was also part of the USA Hockey squad at the 2015 IIHF world hockey championship. However, he saw no game action in the tournament.
More must-reads: