Well, that didn’t take very long.
Just a week after getting canned by the Bruins, Bruce Cassidy is set to roll the dice and take his chances over in Sin City.
According to ESPN/NHL Network’s Kevin Weekes, Cassidy has been hired as head coach of the Vegas Golden Knights — ending what ultimately ended up being six days and 20-ish hours on the unemployment line for the former B’s bench boss.
Considering the resume Cassidy put together during his time in Boston (245-108-46 record, 2019 Jack Adams Award, 2019 Presidents’ Trophy, six playoff berths and a trip to the 2019 Stanley Cup Final), it didn’t come as much of a surprise that the 57-year-old coach was going to soar to the top of the list for many franchises in need of a new voice on the bench.
And Cassidy signaled right away during his Zoom call with the media on Thursday that he wasn’t expecting to take some time off in 2022-23.
“Absolutely,” Cassidy said of coaching next season. “This is what I do. Obviously, I have a family [and] you have to make sure it’s the right opportunity for myself and my family. And they’re the right fit and I’m the right fit for them.”
Even on that Thursday morning, Cassidy confirmed that he had spoken to a number of teams, stressing the need for a good fit for both his family and whatever franchise he’d be offering his services for.
And when it comes to the situation presented to him, Vegas sure seems like a no-brainer for someone with Cassidy’s coaching profile.
Even though the Golden Knights are coming off of their first missed playoff berth in their five-year existence, Vegas was also hampered by a slew of injuries — with key cogs like Jack Eichel, Mark Stone, Max Pacioretty, Reilly Smith, Robin Lehner and Alec Martinez all spending a good amount of time on the shelf. Even with their lost season, Vegas is very much a team looking to win now — given their lofty spending over these last few seasons and their blockbuster deal for Eichel back in November 2021.
Not only should Cassidy work well with what is a pretty veteran-heavy room in Vegas, but the Golden Knights' roster should also have the personnel that can cater to Cassidy’s preferred style of play — be it a quick transition game or a structured zone defense.
Add in the fact that Vegas’ blue line also has a few regulars capable of clapping shots from the point, and Cassidy should be able to draw even more offense out of this group — especially with Eichel set to benefit from another year removed from his neck surgery.
When asked last week what type of team he was hoping to work with moving forward, Cassidy acknowledged that he hoped they would follow a similar blueprint as the Bruins teams he helmed for 5+ years.
“I hope we’re hard to play against," Cassidy said. "I hope we’re structurally solid. I hope we create offense when the situation dictates and the players that have the ability to do that will do it. I hope we’re a team and we stick together all over the ice.”
As for the Bruins? Well, the search continues for a bench boss ready to step into an uncertain state of limbo for this Original-Six organization.