It's not unusual to see an expansion franchise go through three head coaches in seven seasons. However, the Vegas Golden Knights are no ordinary team. They've made every Stanley Cup playoff iteration sans 2021-22, made the Stanley Cup Final twice, and won everything in 2023. It's been beaten like a drum at this point. However, few expansion franchises can claim this, especially in the Pacific Northwest.
But let's go over the past head coaches in franchise history, shall we? First, there was Gerard Gallant, the head coach who led the Golden Knights to the Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural season. Along the way, he stockpiled 118 wins before getting fired for a 24-19-6 start in the 2019-20 season. Gallant was also known for having a bad temper and losing his cool in key moments.
After that is Pete DeBoer. DeBoer is a part of Golden Knights history the same way peanut butter and jelly go together. He's been involved in every season for the franchise, whether behind the bench or facing his old hockey club. DeBoer had a record of 98-50-12 before being fired in 2021-22 for missing the playoffs. He was good at making the Stanley Cup playoffs with his shoot-and-pray style. However, it led to two semifinal appearances and no Stanley Cups. That's when a new figure entered the fold.
Bruce Cassidy leads the way for the Vegas Golden Knights
One common criticism of old Vegas Golden Knights teams was they were too relaxed. Max Pacioretty accused his former team of not having any accountability, saying the team's relaxed nature hurt them. It's a small part of why they missed the postseason in 2021-22, where they had no answers to the injuries in their own right.
Therefore, a new head coach was needed. Someone had to set everyone straight with a straightforward style, holding everyone accountable. Bill Foley couldn't have an underachieving team fall short of their Stanley Cup ambitions, after all. Oh no, they had a promise to fulfill.
That's where Bruce Cassidy came in. The former Boston Bruins head coach brought that hard-nosed style to the Golden Knights, winning a Stanley Cup in his first season. It wasn't like Cassidy was new to the game, either. He led the Bruins to being within a game of winning the 2019 Stanley Cup, after all.
Cassidy was what the doctor ordered
Along the way, Cassidy became the winningest head coach in Vegas Golden Knights history with 119 wins. He surpassed Gerard Gallant and cemented himself as the greatest head coach in Golden Knights history. Currently, they're near the top of the NHL hierarchy with 49 points entering Friday, leading the Pacific Division in the process.
Congrats to Bruce Cassidy on becoming the winningest head coach in VGK history! 👏 👏 #VegasBorn pic.twitter.com/jL0tQ6iQTi
— Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) December 24, 2024
The Bruins had one issue with Cassidy's coaching style: he was too "hard-nosed". A group of Bruins players brought up these problems with upper management, stating that they would be gone if he wasn't fired. However, his replacement, Jim Montgomery, didn't last long by being axed in his third season.
In an age where NHL coaches are disposable, the Golden Knights struck gold by hiring Bruce Cassidy. They got a coach who kept the team upright, keeping them focused on a bigger prize. That's something past Golden Knights teams didn't have, whether it was Pete DeBoer and his power play "merchant," Steve Spott, or Gallant. It's paying dividends for the team, putting them atop the NHL. Sometimes, you must toughen up to become a top team in your respective league.