The next coach of the Rangers is a hot topic lately. Peter Laviolette has not been the main issue with the Rangers. It’s something we’ve been adamant about here. The way the Rangers are playing this season, with mostly the same roster heading into the year, is night and day to last year, just in a bad way. The players shoulder most of the blame. But Laviolette did himself no favors with some roster decisions and quotes, leading to his seat getting awfully hot.
Should the next coach of the Rangers come internally?
Assuming Laviolette is indeed let go after this season, the two most likely internal candidates would be Michael Peca or Dan Muse. It is worth noting Phil Housley is an associate coach, not an assistant coach, which is a level up from both. But given how porous the defense is this year, it’s hard to imagine Housley getting the gig, or even staying with the Rangers beyond this season.
Muse has been the guy many pegged as Laviolette’s eventual replacement, if the next coach of the Rangers came internally. Muse was a head coach with the USNDT before coming to the Rangers, and ran the penalty kill in Nashville before that. The Rangers love taking players out of the US National Development Team, notably EJ Emery, Gabe Perreault, Drew Fortescue, and Brett Berard.
Peca is known for being a special teams and faceoff coach, though it’s unknown who actually runs the penalty kill with the Rangers. If it’s Muse, then Peca would be the face of the anemic powerplay. But the Rangers are much improved in the faceoff dot, and we aren’t entirely sure if the powerplay struggles are due to players or system. If we are giving Laviolete some leash regarding his impact, then logically we give Peca the same leash. Not without blame, but not the main culprit.
Neither have NHL head coaching experience, but it does seem many want the next coach of the Rangers to be a fresh face, and not a re-tread.
Mike Sullivan and John Tortorella
It’s long been rumored that Mike Sullivan has been the preferred coaching target for Chris Drury. He wanted Sullivan both times before hiring Gerard Gallant and Laviolette, mostly because Sullivan simply wasn’t available. There have been even more rumblings that Sullivan might be let go by Pittsburgh, almost ensuring he would be the next coach of the Rangers come this offseason.
Until John Tortorella stepped down as head coach of the Flyers today.
If Sullivan is not available, the smart money would be on Torts returning to be the next coach of the Rangers, assuming he still wants to coach. Sully and Torts run virtually the same systems, which is an aggressive 2-1-2 or 1-2-2 forecheck through the offensive and neutral zones, and a straight zone defense in the defensive zone. They both focus more on north-south play. For what it’s worth, Laviolette focuses on north-south play as well, just they aren’t executing this year.
Focusing on Tortorella, since Sullivan is still under contract with the Penguins, there are some valid concerns with yet another retread, especially one that flamed out and had a borderline mutiny in the locker room before his ousting in 2013. He had a similar issue in Vancouver, before he evolved his coaching style.
It was in Columbus where Torts started to give his skill players more freedom. The focus was on Zach Werenski, who flourished under Torts as a “floater” without a specific role in his system. It worked great, and Columbus made the playoffs in four straight seasons under Torts. He also helped some guy named Artemi Panarin take the next step in his career and become the game breaker he is today.
The next coach of the Rangers needs to be a guy that has fresh ideas, a willingness to go to bat publicly for his players, and a system that fits the roster. Torts checks all three boxes, plus has the added bonus of familiarity with the GM and with its star player.
If Torts wants to coach, then he will likely be the next coach of the Rangers. If not, then we will see what happens with Sullivan in Pittsburgh. If both are available, Chris Drury might faint.
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