In case you haven’t heard, the Bruins are now looking for a new coach after firing Bruce Cassidy on Monday.
Reacting to Bruins' decision to fire Bruce Cassidy
So, who are some of the candidates Don Sweeney and Cam Neely might look at to replace Cassidy? Here are 10. Of course, the Bruins’ list could end up being much longer.
Barry Trotz
Trotz has been the biggest name on the market since the Islanders surprisingly fired him last month. The 59-year-old has 23 years of NHL head coaching experience and ranks third all-time in wins. He led the Capitals to the Stanley Cup in 2018, and his Islanders knocked off the Bruins in the second round in 2021. One hang-up: If Sweeney and Neely want to open things up offensively, Trotz wouldn’t seem to be the guy. His system is even more defense-oriented than Cassidy’s.
Jay Leach
Leach, 42, spent four years as head coach of the Providence Bruins from 2017-21 before moving to the NHL level as an assistant coach with the expansion Seattle Kraken this past season. In 2019-20, his P-Bruins had the best record in the AHL’s Eastern Conference before COVID canceled the remainder of the season. If working with younger players is a deciding factor, Leach obviously has plenty of experience doing that. The Athletic’s Fluto Shinzawa has already labeled Leach “the leading candidate.”
Ryan Mougenel
Mougenel, 46, was an assistant on Leach’s Providence staff for two years before taking over as head coach when Leach left. The Bruins like him, as do his players, but his entire experience as a head coach is one year in the AHL and three in the ECHL. That may not be enough.
Joe Sacco
If anyone on the Bruins’ current NHL staff has a shot, it would probably be Sacco. The 53-year-old Medford native and Boston University alum has been an assistant coach in Boston since 2014, and he had four years of NHL head coaching experience with the Colorado Avalanche before that. His tenure there ended with friction between him and the team’s young core, though, so the Bruins’ front office would have to be convinced that he’s better-equipped to manage young players now.
Marc Savard
How great of a story would this be? The 44-year-old former Bruin is currently in his first season as head coach of the Ontario Hockey League’s Windsor Spitfires. All he’s done is lead them to a first-place finish in their conference and a berth in the league final, where they currently have a 2-1 series lead over the Hamilton Bulldogs. Savard previously spent one season as an assistant coach with the St. Louis Blues in 2019-20. He may not have a ton of experience, but Savard is likely going to be an NHL coach sooner than later.
Rick Tocchet
Among several other cryptic tweets sent out by ESPN’s John Buccigross Monday night was one of Neely and Tocchet. The two were teammates in Boston in 1995-96. The 58-year-old Tocchet, now a studio analyst for TNT, would be a different voice, but whether he’d be the right one is debatable. In his previous six seasons as a head coach -- two in Tampa Bay, four in Arizona -- his only playoff appearance came thanks to the expanded bubble field in 2020.
David Quinn
It’s no secret that Quinn, 55, wants another shot in the NHL after getting fired by the Rangers in 2021. He spent this past season coaching the U.S. Olympic and World Championship teams. Prior to his three years in New York, he spent five as the head coach at BU, his alma mater. He helped lead the Terriers to the national championship game in 2015 and previously won a national title as an assistant in 2009. Oh, and he coached Charlie McAvoy and Matt Grzelcyk at BU.
Nate Leaman
The Providence College head coach has popped up in NHL rumors before. Boston College and Boston University both reportedly at least reached out to him about their openings this spring. So far, though, the 49-year-old has remained with the Friars for 11 years, compiling a .608 winning percentage. He led PC to a national title in 2015, beating Quinn’s Terriers in the final. He led the U.S. to World Junior gold in 2021. Former Bruins Noel Acciari and Tim Schaller are among his NHL alums. Boston pick Riley Duran played there this past season. The Bruins know Leaman well, and they might be the one NHL job that would appeal most to him.
Ted Donato
Donato, 53, has been head coach at Harvard since 2004 and by all accounts is perfectly happy there. But if we just want to connect some dots, Donato played with Sweeney at Harvard and played with both Sweeney and Neely in Boston. He once helped out with Bruins rookie practices. Boston drafted his son, Ryan. Donato’s Crimson have made five of the last seven NCAA tournaments, and they reached the Frozen Four in 2017. He has helped develop plenty of young players, including 2021 Norris Trophy winner Adam Fox.
Rick Bowness
Bowness, 67, has been around so long that he actually coached Sweeney and Neely -- way back in 1991-92, during his one season as Bruins head coach. That team, which didn’t have Neely most of the season because of his knee injury, swept Montreal in the second round before getting swept by Pittsburgh in the conference finals. Bowness spent much of the last two decades as a top assistant, but got back into the head coaching game in 2019-20 when he led the Dallas Stars on a surprise run to the Stanley Cup Final. He stepped down as Dallas’ coach a couple weeks ago. If he wants to continue coaching, there will likely be interest from NHL teams. You would think the Bruins would want to go younger than this, but you never know.
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