The coaching carousel has already spun hard once, and a few more names could be feeling the heat before the 2026-2027 season even gets going.
Some of the biggest shakeups came in the 2025 NHL season, when Kris Knoblauch was dismissed after a strong three-year run in Edmonton that still ended with consecutive Stanley Cup Final appearances and then a disappointing season. Bruce Cassidy’s exit from the Vegas Knights came in the middle of the year and caught plenty of people off guard. Patrick Roy and the Islanders agreed to part ways, Craig Berube was out in Toronto, Jim Hiller was let go by the LA Kings, and Dean Evans moved on from the Blue Jackets.
Now the pressure starts to build on the next group.
John Hynes is firmly in the spotlight in Minnesota, where the expectations have been raised to a simple standard: Stanley Cup or bust. The Wild have the kind of talent that makes a deep run possible, and the roster includes Quinn Hughes, Kirill Kaprizov, Brock Faber, and strong goaltending.
But there’s also no wiggle room if the results fall short. Minnesota plays in a tough Western Conference, yet the message around the club is clear: no excuses.
The Wild finished last season with 104 points and went out in the second round. They have not reached the conference finals since the 2002-2003 season, back when the division was still called the North West. That stretch says plenty about why the pressure keeps rising.
In Edmonton, Mike Babcock is back behind an NHL bench for the first time since 2019. He was hired by the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2023 but later resigned, and now he’s getting another shot with the Oilers as they try to steady things. Given the baggage attached to Babcock’s name, it’s hard to see this turning into a long stay.
His reputation has long been tied to criticism over his use of intense, old-school psychological warfare, mental manipulation, and verbal degradation that multiple former players and staff members described as workplace bullying.
New Jersey is another place where the coach could quickly find himself under scrutiny. The Devils have a new general manager in Sunny Mehta, who previously had success with the Florida Panthers, and Sheldon Keefe is now working with a roster that needs a jump. New Jersey finished third in 2024, then slipped to seventh in 2025, and that kind of drop puts Keefe’s job in play if the trend doesn’t reverse.
The Devils have added Anthony Mantha and Evan Rodrigues, and they’re hoping Nico Daws can grow into the starting goalie role, especially with Jake Allen getting older. If the roster stays healthy, New Jersey has a chance to make noise in the Metropolitan Division.
But everything still runs through Jack Hughes. If he can’t stay on the ice, the expectations around this team have to change.
In Other News...
Bruins Could Be Pulled Into A Costly Devils Reunion Push
The Devils are already looking ahead to the 2026-27 picture, and one familiar name keeps surfacing as a possible fit: Pavel Zacha. New Jersey has the kind of trade ammunition that matters in these discussions, from draft picks to prospects, and Zachas profile as a middle-six forward makes him an easy player to envision back in the lineup if the opportunity ever opens up.
Boston, though, has its own reasons to hold firm for now. Zacha remains part of the Bruins longer-term planning, even as outside interest builds around a player who still fits a lot of teams needs, which is why this sort of reunion talk has been difficult to dismiss. For the Devils, the question is not whether Zacha would make sense, but whether the timing and cost ever line up in a way that pulls Boston into a deal. [Read more 🡒]
Jesper Bratt Just Gave Devils Fans A New National Media Snub
NHL Networks latest ranking of the top 20 wingers for the upcoming season left out Jesper Bratt, and for Devils fans it landed like another reminder that the rest of the league still hasnt quite caught up to what he has become. The 2016 sixth-round pick has carved out a remarkable career in New Jersey, piling up 172 goals and 346 assists over 634 games while recently setting a franchise record for assists in a season.
For a player drafted 162nd overall, Bratt has long been one of the leagues better success stories, and his omission only adds to the sense that he still gets less national attention than his production deserves. The Devils know what they have, but the latest list is the kind of snub that tends to follow a player until the broader hockey world finally decides to notice. [Read more 🡒]
Dougie Hamilton Still Looms Over A Devils Decision That Could Matter
Dougie Hamilton is still part of the Devils picture, even after last seasons trade chatter made it easy to imagine a different outcome. Under current general manager Sunny Mehta, there does not appear to be any real urgency to move him, and that matters because New Jersey is trying to navigate a roster built to contend while keeping enough stability on the back end.
Hamiltons contract and role only sharpen the decision. He has two years left on a deal with a $9 million cap hit, and the Devils may simply decide the safer path is to keep a proven defenseman in place rather than chase a replacement market that does not offer many clean answers. For a team trying to stay in the playoff mix, that kind of calculus can linger well into the season. [Read more 🡒]