Ralph Krueger of the Buffalo Sabres
Career: 49-53-15 Playoffs: N/A
Moving into his second season behind the bench for the Buffalo Sabres, Ralph Krueger has the least NHL experience in the division. He previously coached in Europe, winning five straight championships in Austria as well as the Swiss National team that made three Olympic appearances. He was the bench boss for the Edmonton Oilers during the 2012-13 season before switching to soccer as Director of Southampton of the English Premiere league.
The Sabres were one of only seven teams to not be included in the NHL’s return to play Stanley Cup Qualifier. This lead to several front office managements changes, however, Krueger was kept on as head coach. While he has no experience coaching in the NHL playoffs, it will be interesting to see what he brings to the rink with his eclectic resume.
Lindy Ruff of the New Jersey Devils
Career: 736-554-78 Playoffs: 66-54
Lindy Ruff may be entering his first season as Head Coach of the New Jersey Devils, but he brings 19 years of NHL experience to the rink. During his time with the Buffalo Sabres, Ruff steered the team to four deep playoff runs. An Eastern Conference Final (ECF) and Stanley Cup Finals (SCF) appearance during the Dominik Hasek era and back to back ECF appearances to start the cap era. He would win the 2005-06 Jack Adams award as the leagues best coach.
He later coached the Dallas Stars for four seasons, leading them to one first place division finish and one playoff series victory.
Bruce Cassidy of the Boston Bruins
Career: 208-113-9-41 Playoffs: 29-29* (not including Stanley Cup Qualifier warm-up games)
After two uneventful seasons with the Washington Capitals in the early 2000’s, Bruce Cassidy would take the helm of the Boston Bruins. After missing the playoffs for two straight seasons and middling around the .500 mark, Bruins management decided to make a change. Cassidy would replace Claude Julien behind the Boston Bruins bench in the second half of the 2016-17 season. A little more than one season later, the Bruins were back in the SCF, losing in game seven to the St. Louis Blues.
Cassidy would follow up that SCF appearance with a Presidents trophy as the leagues top team and a Jack Adams Award in 2019-20.
Alain Vigneault of the Philadelphia Flyers
Career: 689-456-35-105 Playoffs: 78-77
Alain Vigneault started his coaching career with the Montreal Canadiens. After parts of four seasons he left with a sub .500 record and one playoff appearance. Hired by the Vancouver Canucks several years later, he immediately led them to a first place finish in their division in 2006-07, earning him the Jack Adams Award. He would later lead them to 5 straight first place finishes, two Presidents Trophies and a SCF appearance in 2010-11.
The next two seasons were ended with first round playoff upsets, including a sweep by the San Jose Sharks in 2012-13. He was then released and subsequently signed by the New York Rangers. in his first season as the Rangers bench boss he steered them to the SCF. The following year, the Rangers would win the Presidents Trophy. The next several years are painful to Rangers fans as Vigneault slowly lost the room as the team declined. He was relieved of his duties following the 2017-18 season, coinciding with the Rangers rebuild.
Vigneault was hired by the Flyers at for the 2019-20 season. The team was on pace to its best wins record since 1985-86.