The Nashville Predators are making an unexpected change behind the bench. Per an initial report from ESPN’s Kevin Weekes, Nashville has let go head coach John Hynes with a year left on his deal and is hiring former Florida Panthers interim head coach and current New Jersey Devils assistant Andrew Brunette.
Hynes was given a two-year extension from the Predators just over a calendar year ago. After selling at the trade deadline, Nashville went on a 12-9-2 run and nearly squeaked into the playoffs despite key injuries, finishing just three points outside and 10th in the Western Conference.
That, combined with the delayed timing into the offseason (Washington has already created and filled their head coaching vacancy after a weeks-long search), makes this a piece of news with very peculiar timing.
With Barry Trotz set to become the second general manager in franchise history this offseason, he evidently felt a change was necessary behind the bench. In doing so, he brings in a player he coached as a member of the Predators early on in the team’s lifespan – incidentally, Brunette scored the first regular-season goal in Nashville history.
Brunette does bring a varied experience to the Nashville bench, beginning his administrative career with the Minnesota Wild after retirement in 2012. With Minnesota, he served in four different roles (special assistant to the GM, assistant GM, assistant coach, and director of player personnel) in just seven seasons before joining the Panthers as an assistant coach.
He became the team’s interim head coach in October 2021 after Joel Quenneville resigned in response to the investigation into the Chicago Blackhawks’ mishandling of 2010 sexual assault allegations against then-video coach Brad Aldrich. His coaching performance down the stretch earned him a President’s Trophy and a nomination for the Jack Adams Award, but the interim tag was never removed, and Florida instead hired Paul Maurice the following offseason.
Brunette found a home for 2022-23 as an associate coach on the New Jersey Devils’ bench, largely entrusted with running the team’s power play, which ranked 13th in the league during the regular season. In February, Brunette was charged with driving under the influence while in South Florida during the league’s All-Star break.
He inherits a Nashville roster that, while imperfect, still boasts a mix of star power (Filip Forsberg, Roman Josi, Juuse Saros) and a healthy number of young players on the rise. Brunette’s hiring seems like a targeted move to try and generate more offense out of the team’s current core.
The decision puts Hynes in a tough spot, as many teams are already well down the road in their coaching searches and weren’t expecting him to become available. However, The Athletic’s Arthur Staple notes that Hynes could be a contender for the New York Rangers head coaching job, replacing the outgoing Gerard Gallant.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
And now Hynes is apparently in the running to be the Rangers coach. Not sure he’s the right fit for the team, but he’s a buddy of Drury’s.
@padam – That would be bad for the Blueshirts, not to mention CD’s long-term future.
Yes, Virginia, there really is a Santa Claus!
It’s trendy to fire your coach this year!
I like it
So Trotz’ first move is to hire a recent DUI guy as HC? Okay then.
But I’m all for 2nd chances, yet I don’t think Brunette’s resume is all that impressive. But Hynes was meh as HC, so who knows.
Glad to see Brunette as head coach finally. Coaching any team to a Presidents’ trophy is quite an achievement. At least enough of an achievement to have the chance of being 1 of 32 NHL head coaches.
Hynes being let go really isn’t that surprising. There’s been talk of this happening coming out of Nashville for a few weeks now. He’s not Trotz’ guy. Brunette’s a good fit with Nashville’s young forwards
Not sure how brunette keeps getting these coaching jobs when he keeps getting dui’s at every stop tbh
as far as i know,he only got one. and that was on a golf cart