NHL rumors: Washington Capitals to interview Peter Laviolette
According to the latest NHL rumors, Peter Laviolette could be the next Washington Capitals head coach.
After losing to the New York Islanders in the first round of the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Washington Capitals parted ways with head coach Todd Reirden. According to the latest NHL rumors, the Capitals are quickly moving to find their new head coach, as they’ve already asked for, and received, permission from the Nashville Predators to talk to Peter Laviolette.
This report comes from Elliotte Friedman.
Here’s what Friedman had to say in his latest 31 Thoughts article.
Washington has permission to talk to Peter Laviolette, and he is very much a contender.
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This shouldn’t be surprising as the Capitals have reportedly been looking for a veteran head coach after striking out with Reirden. Laviolette is one of the most experienced coaches on the market, as he has coached in over 1,200 regular season games and over 1,350 games if you include the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Laviolette’s 637 wins rank 16th all-time among head coaches. He’s the only coach in NHL history to lead three different franchises to a Stanley Cup Final. (Carolina Hurricanes in 2006, Philadelphia Flyers in 2010, Nashville Predators in 2017). Laviolette won the Stanley Cup with the Hurricanes.
For the Capitals, Laviolette checks off pretty much all of the boxes. He’s a veteran coach. Laviolette has won a Stanley Cup. He has a history of getting teams to play better defensively. Though his history with offense is concerning, it’s worth pointing out he’s rarely had a forward core like Washington’s to work with.
Time is running out for the Capitals, though. They can’t afford to wait for someone to develop. The Capitals have to hire the coach who helps them win right now. History suggest that coach could be Laviolette. And one would have to imagine Laviolette would be interested in coaching the Capitals as well.
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Laviolette would get to work with some impressive forwards, including Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, T.J. Oshie, Jakub Vrana, Tom Wilson, and Evgeny Kuznetsov. He’d also get to work with potential Norris Trophy winning defenseman John Carlson. Cost could be an issue, but on the other hand, teams probably don’t want to spend too much with finances in disarray thanks to the pandemic.