Coaching Conundrum 2019-07-12 John Torterella- 61, EHE All-Time Record (NHL) 176-200 Bruce Cassidy- 54, EHE All-Time Record (AHL) 177-171 Two excellent Coaches, two contracts expiring this offseason. One NHL Coaching job in New Jersey. So who gets the job? That is the crucial decision Cole Bates must make in his 2nd off season as General Manager and President of Hockey Operations. One would assume change might be necessary based on the lack of success The Devils had this season. However, its no secret that Devils Head Coach John Tortorella in particular didn't have much to work with up at the NHL level. In fact, Bates will be the first to point that out. "Look, Torts is not to blame here ok? It started with the letter to our fans a year ago. We saw handful of our best players were traded for futures. Torts didn't have the proper resources in place to contend for a playoff spot." Bates continued "John has been huge for the development of guys like Matt Barzal, Erik Gustafsson, and Brandon Montour. The Devils are lucky to have John behind the bench and I do believe there was some development here despite our record." Meanwhile, AHL affiliate Springfield Thunderbirds Head Coach Bruce Cassidy guided the team from a 1-9-2 start to 2nd in the North Division before a first round playoff exit. The youth-infused T-Birds went 42-18-4 after their disastrous start. Cassidy made the bold move of holding a closed-door-meeting, and stripping exotic night club regular Ryan White of his team's captaincy, which really jumpstarted the turnaround. "We love the job Bruce has done down there too. Start of the season down there was rough, but Bruce was instrumental in rallying the troops and got things back on track." Explained Bates As noted earlier, both Tortorella and Cassidy have expiring contracts at the end of this season. Bates confirmed that The Devils want to stick with one of the two coaches already in their system. "It's going to be one of either John or Bruce. Our organization has been blessed with having two outstanding coaches in our system. Both men deserve a Head Coaching job in the EHE." Despite no official word at this time, reports around the team suggest The Devils are leaning toward promoting Cassidy, which would allow Tortorella to become a Free Agent. One way, or another, New Jersey's coaching situation is in line for changes this offseason. A big decision lies ahead. Stay tuned!
