We are in January which means that the 2020 All-Star Game is nearly upon us, and the Pacific Division will be coached by a member of the Vegas Golden Knights.
After seeing his team beat the Philadelphia Flyers in the first game of the Decade on Thursday, Vegas Golden Knights Head Coach Gerard Gallant was announced as the Head Coach of the Pacific Division at the 2020 All-Star Game in St. Louis.
It is the second time in three years that Gallant has been chosen to coach at one of the NHL’s flagship events during the regular season, and it is an honor that further highlights the stellar job Gallant has done in Vegas.
With Head Coaches being picked for the All-Star Game based on who has the highest points percentage (points earned divided by total possible points), this was an achivement earned on merit by Gallant.
Racking up a points percentage of .591 with a record of 23-15-6, Gallant was the top dog in the Pacific Division and he will now head to St. Louis looking for another win after leading the Pacific Division to victory at the 2018 All-Star Game in Tampa Bay.
It was a magical moment for Gallant in what was a year full of them as he led the Golden Knights to the Stanley Cup Final during their inaugural year.
The coaches for the 2020 #NHLAllStar Game are set! pic.twitter.com/RrYAqxm5R0
— NHL (@NHL) January 3, 2020
And Gallant will be hoping that another taste of success at the 2020 All-Star Game translates to the Knights making it back to the Stanley Cup Final for the second time in three years.
It is certainly a possibility given how talented this Vegas roster is, and Gallant has proven that he is the perfect Head Coach for this group and for this franchise.
He has been like the horse whisperer but the type that specializes in abandoned horses who need rehoming and retraining.
By that we mean Gallant was responsible for bringing together a group of players back in 2017 who were misfits at their previous teams, cast off into hockey wilderness.
However, Gallant quickly cultivated a them-and-us attitude in the locker room and got the best out of every single player, helping to unlock potential in players like William Karlsson, Jonathan Marchessault and Shea Theodore, while giving future Hall of Famer Marc-Andre Fleury a new lease of life.
And, with the team having established themselves as a bona fide Stanley Cup contender, Gallant has taken shiny new toys given to him by the front office and implemented them perfectly in his system.
Gallant is an old-school type of coach but he is also adaptable, as proven emphatically earlier this year.
Trying to lift a group of players that were left crushed in the wake of a heartbreaking and controversial First Round exit to bitter rivals the San Jose Sharks last year, Gallant watched as his team was plagued by inconsistency early on in 2019-20.
They slumped to a 5-6-3 record in November by which point Gallant had seen enough, tweaking his system from man-to-man coverage in the defensive zone to a more zone-based system.
It has worked a treat with the Golden Knights going 9-4-2 in December, and they currently have control of the Pacific Division as the second half of the regular season begins to roll.
That highlights that Gallant, while having his beliefs, is willing to be flexible in order to put his team in the best possible situation to succeed and he’s not afraid to make changes if things aren’t going well.
Gallant has been an absolute godsend for the Vegas Golden Knights and the two have been a match made in heaven – it is a perfect fit.
His points percentage total through three years with the Golden Knights is .611, and expect that to rise with this team expected to be a contender for the foreseeable future.
And, although Gallant has made mistakes, he’s pushed mostly the right buttons with the Golden Knights and he’s the right man for the job when it comes to taking that next step and delivering a Stanley Cup to Sin City.
But, first, Gallant will have the opportunity to become the winning Head Coach at the All-Star Game for the second time in three years when he heads to St. Louis on Jan. 24-25, and the Pacific Division will be in good hands.
Joining Gallant will be Boston Bruins Head Coach Bruce Cassidy who will take charge of the Atlantic Division, Craig Berube of the St. Louis Blues will be behind the bench for the Central Division and Washington Capitals bench boss Todd Reirden will lead the Metro Division.
The Vegas Golden Knights overcame some early adversity to become the team we all thought they were, and a lot of credit has to go to Gallant who has really seen his stock rise since joining this franchise.
And Gerard Gallant will now get his moment in the spotlight in charge of a star-studded Pacific Division team in St. Louis, before returning to Vegas looking to win the real prize with the Golden Knights.
Congrats, Coach!