Vegas general manager Kelly McCrimmon released the following:

I have tremendous respect for Ryan Craig as both a person and a professional and believe we have an ideal coach to lead our team in Henderson. He is a proven leader who has learned from some of the game’s best coaches. He understands the importance of the AHL level both in terms of developing our NHL prospects and creating a winning environment.

While serving as an assistant in the NHL is a great start to any coaching resume, for Craig to take the next step, he likely needs some head coaching experience. He’ll get that opportunity after six years on the Vegas bench.

An eighth-round pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning back in 2002 (after a successful junior career under McCrimmon with the Brandon Wheat Kings), Craig carved out a long professional career, bouncing between the AHL and NHL. In 198 games at the highest level, he scored 32 goals and 63 points.

Now, he’ll be in charge of developing the next wave of Golden Knights prospects while getting that much-needed headed coaching experience. It wouldn’t be surprising to see Craig’s name floated around as a potential NHL head coach in a few years, should the AHL experience go well.

General manager Kelly McCrimmon gave the following statement on the hires:

John Stevens is a very respected NHL coach with an extensive resume that adds considerably to our staff. We are excited to add a two-time Stanley Cup winner with head coaching experience. Sean Burke is a great addition to the organization, with tremendous experience as an elite NHL goaltender and an accomplished coach and executive. We are pleased to keep Mike Rosati in an influential role across the organization. With those two and Henderson goaltending coach Fred Brathwaite, we have proven, qualified expertise at the goalie position.

While new head coach Bruce Cassidy won’t get to build the entire bench from scratch, he does get some fresh faces in here to join assistants Ryan Craig and Misha Donskov, who were retained in the wake of Peter DeBoer’s firing. Stevens comes in to replace both Steve Spott and Ryan McGill as an assistant, who were both fired days after DeBoer. Stevens has been an assistant for the Dallas Stars for the past three seasons, but most hockey fans will remember him as the head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers (2006-2009) and the Los Angeles Kings (2016-2018). In all, the 56-year-old Stevens has 15 years of NHL coaching experience.

Burke’s hiring isn’t huge news, as it was reported earlier in the week that Vegas would bring him on. Burke was not on an NHL staff during the 2021-22 season, but he spent seven years as the goalie coach of the Arizona Coyotes and a handful of months in 2021 as the goalie coach of the Montreal Canadiens. He replaces Rosati as the goalie coach, who moves to a more behind-the-scenes role in the organization.

I am proud to add Ryan as an assistant coach. He is well-respected in the hockey community and has been a tremendous leader throughout his playing career, both on and off the ice. I am confident that the leadership characteristics he exuded as a player will translate well behind the bench in his new role as an assistant coach.

The veteran forward is another connection to the Brandon Wheat Kings and Assistant General Manager Kelly McCrimmon, who drafted Craig into the WHL and developed him as owner and GM of the team. Craig served as captain of the team for his final two seasons of junior hockey, and would quickly move into leadership roles on his professional teams as well. Suiting up for 198 NHL games across his playing career, the bruising center registered 63 points mostly in two successful seasons with the Tampa Bay Lightning early on.

Clearly the Golden Knights feel as though Craig can step in and make an impact right away, as he’ll jump right from on the bench to behind it. Giving a young coach an opportunity and allowing him to learn the ropes with a team that has little pressure on it to win should go over well in the coaching fraternity, as they continue to try and brand themselves as a destination for players, coaches and executives around the league.

Bjorkstrand took home the playoff MVP award, joining past winners such as Tomas Tatar, Robin Lehner and Carey Price. He’s carving out quite a playoff career thus far, having put up 77 points in 59 games throughout his time in junior to go with his 16 this season.

For head coach Jared Bednar, this not only is his first Calder Cup victory, it’s the first time an AHL team under his purview progressed past the first round.  Now carrying a strong .589 winning percentage through four seasons as an AHL head coach, he’ll surely start to get looks as a NHL boss soon enough.

If he does, he’ll be following in the footsteps of recent Calder Cup champions; Willie Desjardins took the Texas Stars to the Cup in 2014, and was immediately hired on by the Vancouver Canucks.  Jeff Blashill won with the powerhouse Grand Rapids Griffins in 2013, and was the successor in Detroit after Mike Babcock left for Toronto. In 2012, Jon Cooper took the Norfolk Admirals all the way, winning 55 games in the regular season and taking home the championship.  Two seasons later he was behind the bench for Tampa, and has now taken them deep into the Stanley Cup playoffs in consecutive years.

For players like Bjorkstrand, their days on the the Monsters might be numbered.  After being selected in the third round by the Blue Jackets in 2013, Bjorkstrand returned to the WHL and finished an impressive junior career with 118 points in just 59 games, adding 25 more in 17 playoff contests. This season, he scored 17 goals for the Monsters in the regular season, and made a solid debut for the Blue Jackets, putting up 8 points in just 12 games with the big club.  He’ll look to break camp with the team as early as next season.

The other Monster making waves this postseason was 18-year old Zach Werenski, last season’s eighth overall pick.  After completing his season at the University of Michigan, the defenceman signed an amateur try-out with the Monsters, as to preserve his status for any future expansion drafts. His entry-level deal with the Jackets will kick in in 2016-17, keeping him a first year professional for that season.

Werenski played seven games down the stretch for the Monsters, before becoming one of their top performers in the playoffs.  His 14 points ranked him third overall on the Monsters and second among AHL defencemen trailing only Marlies’ standout Connor Carrick.

While Werenski played exceptionally these playoffs for the Monsters, he’ll be hard pressed to crack the roster this fall.  The Blue Jackets have seven defencemen under contract for next season, including young standouts Ryan Murray and Seth Jones.  With a lot of money tied up long-term at forward in players that aren’t providing much value, the Blue Jackets will need to rely on their young pipeline on the back end for the next few years.

Winning the Calder Cup is an outstanding achievement, and for Monsters’ captain Ryan Craig, it’s a long time coming.  Breaking in with Tampa Bay just after their 2004 Stanley Cup run, Craig has bounced up and down for the next decade, never securing a place in the NHL or repeating his strong rookie season of 28 points in 48 games.  Now 34, he’s a champion at the pro-level for the first time in his career.

You can bet teams will be scouring this roster for players as the season draws closer, betting that success in the AHL could lead to success for their big club. It’s a young, talented group, with six players above the age of 29. While Columbus didn’t have much success at the NHL level this season, they possess the third overall pick in this June’s entry draft after moving up in the lottery and may find themselves in a position to deal from a stocked cupboard in order to improve the team this season.