Early Tuesday morning, the Washington Capitals announced they had hired Peter Laviolette as their next head coach. An all-to familiar face to the city of Philadelphia, Lavy now becomes the enemy. The man who took the Flyers to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2010 as an interim coach, Lavy was beloved by the Philadelphia fanbase. After being fired in October of 2013, Lavy joined the Nashville Predators in May of 2014.
Laviolette was relieved of his duties with the Preds in January of this year and left in limbo until Tuesday morning. Laviolette joins a stacked Metropolitan Division when it comes to coaching. The Metro boasts three coaches in the top-10 all time in wins, and has five of the top-10 active winningest coaches in the NHL currently.
Alain Vigneault – Philadelphia
Of course, we start with the man who resides behind the Philadelphia Flyers bench, Alain Vigneault. AV took the Flyers to the Eastern Conference semi-finals in his first year with the team. He’s 10th most winningest coach of all time (689 wins) and fifth winningest active coach in the NHL.
Barry Trotz – New York Islanders
One of the greatest coaches of all time, Trotz has won 845 games, good for fourth all-time and second among active NHL head coaches. He’s shaped his Islanders team into a defensive powerhouse that looks to remain a top contender for the foreseeable future.
Lindy Ruff – New Jersey
Lindy Ruff was hired by the New Jersey Devils in July of this year, and brings with him a wealth of experience. Ruff is sixth all-time in wins among NHL head coaches. He’s the third winningest active coach in the NHL as well. After obtaining most of his success with the Buffalo Sabres from 1997 to 2013, he joined the Dallas Stars for four years before becoming an assistant with the New York Rangers.
John Tortorella – Columbus
John Tortorella came to Columbus after having coached Tampa Bay from 2000 to 2008, the New York Rangers from 2008 to 2013, and the Vancouver Canucks during the 2013/14 season. Torteralla currently sits at 14th all-time in wins for NHL coaches, and is the seventh winningest active coach in the league.
Mike Sullivan – Pittsburgh
While Mike Sullivan hasn’t been around nearly as long as the other coaches in his division, he’s reached just as much if not more success than his Metropolitan Division counterparts. Sullivan has two Stanley Cups to his name already, coming in 2016 and 2017. With Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin still in tact, the Penguins are always a realistic pick to make it to another Stanley Cup Final.
Peter Laviolette – Washington
Lest we forget the man of the hour, Peter Laviolette is no slouch by any means. Lavy boasts 637 career wins, good for 16th all time and the eighth most among active NHL coaches. Lavy enters a situation in which he will be familiar with. Metro teams are no stranger to Peter Laviolette, but Peter Laviolette is no stranger to Metro teams either.
Overview
The Metropolitan Division is in good hands moving forward. With some of the premier coaches not only in the league, but of all time, fans are in for a treat when these teams face off against each other. The Trotz/Vigneault matchups and the Ruff/Tortorella matchups, not to mention the Laviolette/Sullivan matchups. All Metro matchups are going to be heavily viewed as coaching clinics, and rightfully so. With so many successful coaches in place, Metro hockey has quickly become can’t-miss hockey.
Mandatory Credit – Bill Streicher/Icon Sportswire
