NHL
Barry Trotz resigned as the Washington Capitals coach on June 18th. On June 21, Trotz signed with the New York Islanders. He named Todd Reirden as his successor. On Friday, June 30th, the Washington Capitals promoted Todd Reirden as the coach of the Washington Capitals. Reirden was an assistant from 2014-16 and associate coach for the previous two seasons. He was responsible for the defensemen and the powerplay. Now, Reirden replaces Trotz as Caps Coach.
Daunting Future Ahead as Reirden Replaces Trotz
Taking over a team after they had just won the Cup is not an easy task. The last time a team repeated as Stanley Cup champions with a first time NHL coach was in 1969. Montreal Canadiens won with Claude Ruel, after having won the Cup with Toe Blake the year before. Blake retired after the Canadiens won the cup and his successor, Ruel, took the team to the cup again.
Since then, there have been three other first-time NHL coaches that have taken over a Cup-winning team. The Bruins in 1971, New York Rangers in 1995, and the Detroit Red Wings in 2003. The Bruins lost with Tom Johnson in 1971 after winning the Cup under Harry Sinden in 1970. The New York Rangers, after having won the cup with MIke Keenan in 1994 lost it with Colin Campbell in 1995. Lastly, the Red Wings lost the Cup with Dave Lewis after winning it under Scotty Bowman in 2002.
Trotz left the Capitals after failing to agree on a contract extension. The Capitals took a little time before hiring Reirden, but general manager Brian MacLellan made it clear that from the start Todd was the only candidate.
It seems as though Trotz was grooming Reirden to be a head coach for years. Now the time has come to see whether or not all those games under Trotz’s wing have prepared Reirden for the season(s) to come.
