The Vegas Golden Knights announced the name of their first
ever head coach on Thursday as they officially hired former Florida Panther
bench boss, Gerard Gallant.
Gallant, 53, who had been linked to the position since the Panthers
relieved him of his responsibilities back on November 27. During the 2015-2016
season, he led the Panthers to a franchise best 47 victories and 103 points and
an Atlantic Division title, helping make him a finalist for the 2016 Jack Adams
Award, for Coach of the Year.
In six seasons behind the bench in the National Hockey
League between the Panthers and Columbus Blue Jackets his record includes 152
wins, 140 losses, four ties and 31 overtime losses.
Gallant said, “Being
named the first head coach in Vegas Golden Knights history is such a tremendous
opportunity and one I am extremely grateful for. There is a great deal of excitement
in the hockey community regarding what is happening with the Golden Knights.”
General Manager, George McPhee added, “We are proud to announce Gerard as the first head coach in Vegas
Golden Knights history. He is an experienced head coach, has had success at
multiple levels and has a great reputation amongst the players that have played
for him. We undertook a very due diligence process over the last several months
and canvassed several qualified head coaching candidates to ensure we found the
best coach for our group. And we believe that we have found that coach in
Gerard.”
He continued, “We look
forward to working with him to build a team that our fans and our community are
proud to support.”
While Gallant has been linked to the position since he was
let go during a Panthers road trip, in Raleigh, North Carolina last November,
the reports picked up again on Wednesday when the organization noted that they
were close to naming their first coach.
During his playing days, Gallant laced them up for the
Detroit Red Wings and the Tampa Bay Lightning. In 11 NHL seasons, he put up 211
goals and 269 assists. His best season was the 1988-1989 season, when he scored
39 goals and 54 assists for the Red Wings.
Before coaching the Blue Jackets, from 2003 to 2007, he
served for three seasons as an assistant coach with Columbus. He also served as
a coach with the New York Islanders (2007-2009) and the Montreal Canadiens
(2009-2012).
The Summerside, Prince Edward Island native, was drafted by
the Red Wings with the 107th overall selection in the sixth round of
the 1981 NHL Entry Draft. He began his coaching career with the Summerside
Capitals of the Maritime Junior Hockey League, in the 1995-1996 season, as he
helped guide them to the Royal Bank Cup in 1997.
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