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The Pittsburgh Penguins have a head coach vacancy for the first time in a decade. They fired Mike Sullivan on Monday after missing the playoffs for the third consecutive season. Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang are reaching the end of their careers, and the new coach will have to usher that era out. Who will be the next Penguins head coach after Mike Sullivan's departure?
It is always important to note connections in the NHL. Penguins President and GM Kyle Dubas previously worked with the Toronto Maple Leafs, but there are no obvious connections from that franchise. His AHL coach, Spencer Carbury, has an NHL role, Sheldon Keefe landed in New Jersey, and Mike Babcock won't be coming back soon. While we always try and connect the coach and GM, Dubas may have to go outside the box to fill this role.
Who will be the next Penguins' head coach? They have big shoes to fill after Mike Sullivan's era ended.
The Penguins could bring in another Stanley Cup Champion
Mike Sullivan won two Stanley Cups with the Penguins in 2016 and 2017. He also has the franchise record for games coached, wins, and playoff wins. If there is any candidate who won't be nervous stepping into Sullivan's shoes, it is three-time Stanley Cup Champion Joel Quenneville.
Quenneville was recently reinstated by the NHL after serving a suspension following the investigation into the 2010 Chicago Blackhawks sexual assault scandal. He has not coached since 2022, when he was leading the Panthers to a 7-0-0 start. There are massive red flags here, but with almost three years on the sidelines, people may be willing to hire him. Ex-Blackhawks GM Stan Bowman was hired by the Oilers shortly after being reinstated.
On the ice, Quenneville has been a fantastic head coach for two decades. He has 969 career wins, the second-most of all time, across four stops. He started with the Blues, made a quick stop with the Avalanche, spent 11 years with the Blackhawks, and was in his third season with the Panthers when the scandal broke. This would be a controversial selection, but one the Penguins could make.
Going the college route
The most recent coaching news before Sullivan's firing came from the Chicago Blackhawks. University of Denver head coach David Carle withdrew his name from consideration for the Chicago job. The reporting did not indicate that he was withdrawing his name from every team, just Chicago. Now that the Penguins' job is open, he may consider joining Sidney Crosby for his final run.
Carle has won two National Championships with Denver and consecutive Gold Medals with Team USA at the World Juniors. He has already confirmed that he won't be returning to the Juniors, but he could be back in Denver. He has shown no urgency to get to the NHL stage and could wait for the right opportunity.
Is the right opportunity coaching Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin? Maybe it is. Denver has developed incredible college talent during Carle's run, and they need to develop young players to build around their veterans. Carle could be the perfect fit if he wants to leave the Pioneers.
A recent retread could help the core move forward
The NHL coaching carousel is full of retreads every year. Very few teams hire first-time head coaches, especially when they are trying to get the most out of a veteran core. Jay Woodcroft was a first-time head coach with the Oilers before he was fired last season. The Penguins could bring him in this offseason to elevate this roster to the next level.
Woodcroft took over the Oilers during the 2022-23 season. He took a team that had won 23 of its first 44 games and went 26-9-3 down the stretch. They won their first playoff series of the McDavid era that year and made it to the Conference Final. His lone full season was 2023-24, where their 109 points are the highest total for the franchise since 1986. The Penguins need this kind of immediate response upon hiring a new coach.
There are a lot of retread coaches who get crushed by the fans and media. If Peter Laviolette lands his seventh job, it will be met with incredible eye rolls. But a young coach like Woodcroft getting his second chance could work for the Penguins.
