He’d be very different from Eakins but also doesn’t mind letting his players have freedom in the offensive zone. He’s obviously got loads of experience and he’s been able to win at every stop, most notably winning a Stanley Cup with Carolina and getting to the Final with Nashville.

Laviolette, 58, stepped aside from Washington after three seasons as he and the Capitals agreed to mutually part ways. (Although Gerard Gallant aired his feelings about possibly being on shaky ground in New York.) Peter Laviolette We’ll limit the names to those who aren’t current NHL head coaches. Who could be part of that wide net Verbeek is promising to cast? It won’t be Matt McIlvane, though the new coach of their AHL club might be in line for an NHL job down the road. But at the end of the day, it still takes time and patience.” We’ve got 11 picks this draft, we’ll have nine the next draft. Now, can I say that we’re down the road here a little bit? We’ve got some good young players coming. There’s going to be different scenarios that certain candidates are going to be looking for. “Some of them might be wanting to go into a winning situation,” he continued. When asked how attractive he felt the Anaheim job was, Verbeek said, “It depends on the perspective of the candidates that I talk to.” If they win - and they have the best odds of doing that - the new coach will have Connor Bedard added to that promising foundation. The new coach will have a base that features the forward trio of Trevor Zegras, Troy Terry and Mason McTavish, a young top-four defenseman in Jamie Drysdale and a prospect pool rich with talented blueliners.Īnd we’ll find out in Monday’s draft lottery where the Ducks will pick on June 28. It’s hard to imagine going any lower than the fewest points in the league or the worst record in franchise history. But there are appealing attributes to leading the Ducks. Washington, Calgary and Columbus can be intriguing opportunities. I feel that we’re on a path with younger players getting infused into the lineup and now we got to have those players start taking bigger steps.”Īnaheim isn’t the only open NHL job. Obviously, there’s still a lot of work to do. “Ultimately, I’d like to get a coach in place before the draft, but I’m not going to limit myself to that,” Verbeek said after his team finished a woeful 23-47-12 season. The strange, unique run for Dallas Eakins as #NHLDucks coach is over and the pressure is now on Pat Verbeek to start building a winner. When will that happen? Well, Verbeek is going to take a lot more time with this one.

10 ducks eric carle