NHL insider gives bad-news update on Edmonton Oilers' pursuit of Bruce Cassidy
It’s sounding less and less likely that Bruce Cassidy will be hired by the Edmonton Oilers.
While Mike Babcock is expected to be hired as the next head coach of the Oilers, pending an NHL investigation, there are still some holding out hope that Cassidy could still get the job. The veteran coach was widely seen as the early frontrunner for the Edmonton job, but the Vegas Golden Knights have been withholding permission from the Oilers to interview Cassidy.
It was initially thought that the Golden Knights wanted to delay the decision until after the playoffs, but now that the Stanley Cup has been awarded, things still aren’t looking too good for the Oilers.
NHL insider Darren Dreger gave an update on Cassidy’s status during Tuesday’s edition of the Nielson show on Edmonton Sports Talk.Ā
“It is possible that Kelly McCrimmon and the Vegas Golden Knights relent, and they allow the Oilers to have permission and get to Cassidy. I highly, highly, highly doubt that,” Dreger said.
“That was amplified by somebody who I feel is in-the-know there last night, I checked in when I landed.”
Cassidy remains the best coach looking for a new job and would be a perfect fit for what the Oilers are looking for, but all that won’t matter if they can’t get permission from the Golden Knights.
The NHL appears to be fully on the side of Vegas in this saga, saying that Cassidy is still under contract with the Golden Knights organization through next season, and that blocking the Oilers is within their rights.
If that remains the case, then it would appear that Babcock remains the most likely option for the Oilers. That, however, is dependent on whether the NHL’s active investigation clears Babcock to return to the league.Ā
The Oilers have reportedly already interviewed two other candidates, Craig Berube and Jim Hiller, but neither inspires much confidence and doesn’t exactly fit the mould of what Edmonton is looking for in their next bench boss.
A few alternative options that Edmonton could consider in case this Babcock hiring goes sideways are ex-Calgary Flames coach Darryl Sutter, or even John Tortorella, who will not be returning to coach the Golden Knights next season despite leading them to the Stanley Cup Final.
This has been one of the most chaotic coaching searches in recent NHL memory, and the hope is that the Oilers can figure things out sooner rather than later.