NHL Insights: The Changes Have Become

Things are getting spicy as the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. While there will be handshakes for some teams, those that didn’t make the playoffs have already completed their year-end housekeeping items and are now focusing on offseason needs.

Whether it is a new coach, and there are plenty of openings or upgrading their roster or making sure they keep their free agents on the team, those GMs not in the playoffs have begun work on what is to come next for the organizations.

Even those GMs in the playoffs are starting to prepare for the offseason since the window closes quickly from the end of the Stanley Cup Final to the NHL Draft and the start of Free Agency. However, every year, some moves make you go ‘whoa,’ and while some of the coaching changes were expected, others were not. Now, teams decide where they will go from here.

There have been a lot of coaching changes and interesting quotes as teams wrap up their seasons. Let’s dive into the latest NHL Insights to find out what they are.

NHL Insights: Franchises Making Moves

Coaches Will Be Trending Places Again

The NHL continues to see a trend similar to the NFL, with a “Black Monday” or “Black Friday” – whatever you want to call it. Coaches are being let go a day or two, or sometimes more, after their team’s season ends.

Kicking things off on NHL Insights, we have seen teams like the Anaheim Ducks move on from Greg Cronin after the team moved 21 points up in the standings. However, the tension between the players and the coach was not going to sustain itself. Plus GM Pat Verbeek wanted to go in another direction as he feels the team is a playoff team next season. We will see about that.

In addition, the New York Rangers fired Peter Laviolette. The Boston Bruins will look to replace Joe Sacco. Rick Tocchet is not returning to Vancouver. Mike Sullivan parted ways with the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Seattle Kraken fired Dan Bylsma, and the Philadelphia Flyers are seeking a replacement for Brad Shaw. Not to mention, the Chicago Blackhawks are also looking for a new head coach.

Some of these moves were expected, like Laviolette in New York. Not to mention Rick Tocchet in Vancouver. He was tired of the drama the Canucks created. Bylsma was surprising considering the Kraken weren’t expected to be a playoff team.

Quick Rumor Note: Mike Sullivan is high on the board for both the Rangers and Bruins. The Anaheim Ducks, according to Jimmy Murphy of RG Media, have offered the job to Joel Quenneville. However, University of Denver Head Coach David Carle could be a better fit. But there will be plenty of jobs and names that come up throughout the process.

Seattle Kraken: Could the Seattle Kraken Make A GM Change at the End of the Season?

New York Rangers: New York Rangers Players Have A Sense of Entitlement

New York Islanders: Timing Was Right as New York Islanders Move On From Lou Lamoriello

Vancouver Canucks: NHL Rumors: Could Quinn Hughes Be on the Move?

Organizations Making Management Moves

Along with the coaching changes, teams also made management changes. The New York Islanders decided it was time to move on from Lou Lamoriello. Despite what Lamoriello had done for the organization, ownership felt that the timing was right for them to go in a different direction. The Islanders failed to qualify for the playoffs, something that saved Lamoriello’s job last year; this year, not so much.

Lamoriello refused to get younger and start a retool, which would have helped the Islanders sustain success by adding a goal scorer. Yes, he changed coaches and brought in Patrick Roy, but the roster itself was old and slow. The NHL is a young man’s game, and the Islanders needed to get younger. The trade of Brock Nelson helped matters for the future, but Kyle Palmieri and Jean-Gabriel Pageau had to move, too. They did not.

Now it was time for a new voice to lead the charge. Similar to Seattle, where the Kraken moved on from Ron Francis by promoting him to Team President and promoting Jason Botterill from assistant general manager to General Manager. This was an extraordinary move. As Full Press Hockey documented, there was a chance the Kraken were making a GM change, but keeping on Francis in a new role to see his vision through was a little odd.

Seattle made the playoffs once in 2023. There have been some questionable moves made during the expansion draft, and their free agent signings have also been questioned. Not to mention, not qualifying Morgan Geekie and Daniel Sprong seemed odd at the time. Does not make sense now. Contracts to Chandler Stephenson and Brandon Montour are not the greatest.

A general manager change made sense, but not one from within the organization, especially given the track record.

The winds of change are here. Free Agency will be coming soon as the Stanley Cup Playoffs continue. Don’t be surprised to see more changes coming down the line. Not to mention, could some teams make some interesting moves in the offseason? Stay tuned for those in NHL Rumors.

Look out for another edition of NHL Insights coming this offseason. Maybe even sooner.