Clean slate: A history of Rangers coaches hired in off-season

Coaching carousel (2000-present)

The calendar turned to a new millennium and marked the beginning of the Glen Sather era. Muckler (29-38-12) soon departed, and Ron Low was his replacement for the 2000-01 season. Despite a new plan in the room, the Rangers continued to lose, going 33-43-5-1 in Low’s first campaign.

Low was a former player turned coach who did not get the results behind the bench, earning a 36-38-4-4 record in his final season. Bryan Trottier, another former player, turned coach, took over the team for the start of the 2002-03 campaign and lasted only 48 games. His 21-26-6-1 record forced Glen Sather to step in and become an NHL coach again.

The Rangers spent the next 12 seasons looking for someone to bring the franchise back to their glory years. In 2013-14, Vigneault became the newest head coach, signing on to be John Tortorella’s replacement. Tortorella  just finished his second stint as the boss with a 26-18-4 record in a shortened 48 game 2012-13 season. Vigneault took New York to the Stanley Cup Final in his first season thanks to a 45-31-6 record.

Regular season results can only keep your job secured for so long. Vigneault guided the Rangers to their best regular season in franchise history in 2014-15 with 113 points (53-22-7). Eventually, the team began to struggle, and he lost his job after 2017-18. A last-place division finish (34-39-9) paved the way for Quinn’s hiring for the 2018-19 season.

As the latest head coach hired at the start of a season, Quinn’s team stumbled in his first campaign and finished seventh in the division with a 32-36-14 record.