Rangers hire Peter Laviolette as new head coach after long search
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The Rangers’ month-long search for a new head coach is over.
Peter Laviolette will be named the Rangers’ 37th head coach in franchise history on Tuesday, The Post has learned, marking a new era on Broadway after last season’s colossally disappointing first-round elimination ended with Gerard Gallant parting ways with the team.
The Blueshirts will be the fifth Metropolitan Division team that Laviolette has coached over the course of his 21 seasons in the NHL, but arguably the most win-now club he’s inherited in his career.
Laviolette was dismissed by the Capitals in mid-April after failing to qualify for the playoffs for the first time in his three-year tenure with the organization.
In his other two campaigns in Washington, Laviolette and the Capitals were bounced from the first round.
Despite his lack of recent success, Laviolette won the Stanley Cup with the Hurricanes in 2005-06, his fourth year as an NHL coach.
Not including the years he was replaced midseason, Laviolette has qualified for the playoffs 13 times and has made it to the Stanley Cup Final three times (also in 2009-10 with the Flyers and 2016-17 with the Predators).
The 58-year-old Laviolette was one the most experienced head coaches available this summer.
In addition to putting emphasis on an aggressive forecheck and a clear-cut defensive structure, Laviolette can make strategic in-game adjustments well.
The Rangers struggled in that department under Gallant, who takes a much more hands-off approach in his coaching style.
Laviolette also has a knack for building strong relationships with his players.
The Massachusetts native brings a 717-466-25 coaching record to New York.
Rangers president and general manager Chris Drury took his time with the vetting process for his second head coaching hire.
The decision ended a coaching carousel that saw the Flames hire Ryan Huska, the Capitals give Spencer Carbery his first head coaching gig, the Blue Jackets hire Mike Babcock, the Ducks bring in Greg Cronin and the Predators snag Andrew Brunette.
The pool of available candidates this summer was extremely shallow, especially in comparison to what it was just a year ago.
Drury looked into John Hynes, Jay Leach, Carbery and Babcock.
He also probably considered Kris Knoblauch, who has been head coach of the Rangers’ AHL affiliate, the Wolf Pack, the past four seasons.
Read More: Rangers hire Peter Laviolette as new head coach after long search 2023-06-13 16:47:00