Vegas Golden Knights: Claude Julien Would Be Perfect Fit For Head Coach

Vegas Golden Knights need to find their first Head Coach and Claude Julien should be on top of their list.

With the new franchise set to arrive for the 2017-2018 season, things are finally starting to come together for the Vegas Golden Knights. Owner Bill Foley obviously has to make several more announcements before next season regarding an AHL team, TV and Radio deals, jerseys and ticket pricing. However with Foley and General Manager George McPhee, I believe the coaching vacancy is priority number one as of now.

Multiple Head Coaches are on the market and the Golden Knights are very lucky to have a ton of options for that position. Jack Capuano, Gerard Gallant, Ken Hitchcock are all on the market and all would make solid choices for the first Head Coach. In addition to those coaches, there’s one coach that’s still out there that could be the perfect choice for Vegas and that’s Claude Julien.

The former Boston Bruins head coach has a combined coaching record of 538-332-10-117. He holds the record in wins for the Original 6 franchise with 419 wins. Not to mention he’s made 2 Stanley Cup Finals appearances and won Lords Stanley in dramatic fashion in 2011.

Claude is a very strategic coach that has an emphasis to play a defensive system that brings layers. Julien will also utilize and balance all four lines on his forward group. Another one of Julien’s noteworthy strength’s is his work on the penalty kill. His team’s work on the PK is a

lways among tops in the league year after year.

But like all coaches, they all have their weaknesses. One of Claude’s weaknesses is his work on the powerplay. Whether if it was trying to put the right combination of players or using different formations it just was not a strength for Julien. Development of young players could be the one red flag in my book. Towards the end of his tenure in Boston, Claude just couldn’t seem to figure out how to use guy’s like Tyler Seguin or Dougie Hamilton.

Claude Julien would not only make a great coach on the ice, most of all he’s even better person off the ice. Claude Julien penned a sincere thank you letter to everyone at the Bruins organization and the fans. A first class act from a first class guy.

So why does Sin City seem like a perfect destination for Claude Julien? If you can somehow find a way to lure Julien to Vegas, the team could be an instant playoff team. For example in June of 2007, the Boston Bruins hired Claude Julien as head coach. The roster on paper was awful and it didn’t look like there was a way for this team to get back into the playoffs at least for a few more seasons. Most hockey media sites picked the Bruins to finish 12th-15th in the Eastern Conference in 07-08.

But with Claude Julien at the helm he proved all the critics they were dead wrong. In Julien’s first year with the club he finished in 8th place in the conference qualifying for a playoff spot. Not only did he make the tournament, his team nearly knocked out the 1st place Montreal Canadiens. Keep in mind they were without stud forward Patrice Bergeron for pretty much the entire season.

Although Claude may seem like a great fit for the new franchise, it seems doubtful. Claude Julien in all probability, will be searching for a top dollar coaching contract in the 4-5 million dollar range. It remains to be seen if Foley and McPhee will pucker up that kind of money.

All in all, Claude Julien would be a great fit for the Vegas Golden Knights. Now let’s see if the team decides to go in the direction of “win now” or go the prototypical “build from the ground up” route.