Edmonton Oilers' push for Bruce Cassidy expected to be resolved soon
The Edmonton Oilers are in the early stages of finding a new head coach after firing Kris Knoblauch on Thursday morning.
The situation turned into a debacle, as reports came out days before Knoblauch’s firing that Oilers management had attempted to gain permission from the Vegas Golden Knights to speak to Bruce Cassidy. Cassidy, of course, was fired by the Golden Knights in late March.
Though the Golden Knights didn’t flat-out deny the Oilers from doing so, they have delayed the process as they continue to hunt down a Stanley Cup. Things could soon change on that front, however.
The Golden Knights punched their ticket to the Western Conference Final on Thursday night with a Game 6 win over the Anaheim Ducks. They are now off until Wednesday, which has Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman thinking they may change their stance.
“I suspect now we’re going to get a bit more clarity,” Friedman said on the 32 Thoughts podcast. “Is there a chance that [Cassidy] doesn’t end up in Edmonton? Yes, there’s a chance. But I think they’re going to go hard at him.”
This comes less than 24 hours after Oilers insider Bob Stauffer suggested that GM Stan Bowman and his staff will look to target an experienced and structured head coach who has also won at the NHL level. Cassidy led the Golden Knights to a Stanley Cup championship in 2023.
Interestingly enough, Friedman also revealed that Bowman and Cassidy have some history working alongside one another.
“They worked together in Chicago. Before Bowman was the GM, he was a scout in Chicago, and Bruce Cassidy, after he was fired as the coach of the [Washington] Capitals, he became a scout for the Blackhawks.
“I don’t want to speak for either one of them. I don’t know if they’re friends, but I think they are friendly, and I heard they enjoyed working with each other, and they had a respect for each other.”
As Friedman mentioned, this doesn’t guarantee by any means that the Oilers will land Cassidy, but it continues to sound as though he is their top target.
Other available head coaches who have won at the NHL level include Peter Laviolette and Craig Berube, both of whom are the hard-nosed type the Oilers appear to be looking for.
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