Peter Laviolette (former New York Rangers head coach)
Veteran former New York Rangers and Washington Capitals head coach Peter Laviolette is a well known and recognized figure in the East in the league since the 2000s decade over the past 20-25 years or so. Laviolette has coached over 1,000 games in the regular season and five-dozen games in the postseason in the playoffs in this past couple of decades.
He led the Carolina Hurricanes to a Stanley Cup in the East roughly two decades ago (2005-06 season in the Southeast Division). Laviolette also led the Philadelphia Flyers and Nashville Predators to Stanley Cup Finals appearances in the 2010s decade in the last 15 years.
Laviolette last coached with the Rangers in the East in the 2020s decade in this past few seasons. He helped to lead the Rangers to an appearance in the Eastern Conference Finals in his first season with the team in 2024.
DJ Smith (LA Kings interim head coach)
This past week, Holland in the front office said that in the exit interviews with the media in press conferences that the Kings would plan to interview between five and eight head coaching potential candidates this upcoming offseason. Smith was the interim head coach in this past couple of months for the Kings and in the postseason in the playoffs this past week.
The Kings made the postseason in the playoffs in the West this spring late last month in late April. Smith led the team to a .609 points percentage in the West in the Pacific Division this past regular season. He was the head coach of the Ottawa Senators in the East in the Atlantic Division in the early-to-mid 2020s decade.
Smith has been the Kings' interim head coach in the last couple of months in the West since LA fired former head coach Jim Hiller in early March on March 1. Holland and the Kings in the front office will now decide whether they want to take the interim tag off of Smith to make him the next full-time head coach for the franchise and for the 2026-27 season.
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