In a recent segment on the Fan Hockey Show, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, widely regarded as the NHL's top insider, shared his thoughts on the Vegas Golden Knights blocking the Edmonton Oilers from negotiating with former Vegas head coach Bruce Cassidy. Friedman did not mince words, describing the situation as "weird" and questioning the rationale behind Vegas's decision.
Friedman's Reaction to Vegas's Block
"It's weird," Friedman said. "There's no question about it. Let a guy go and move on. That's my reaction. If someone wants to talk to them, you better have a good reason not to let them talk to them." The Oilers have yet to make any official statement regarding the future of current coach Kris Knoblauch, who remains under contract for three more years.
Impact on Edmonton's Coaching Situation
Friedman elaborated on the dilemma facing the Oilers: "I think what this does, getting out to it, puts Edmonton in a really tough spot. Because if you're Kris Knoblauch and you're hearing this, or you're the coaching staff there and you're hearing this... I don't know how often this has happened. I think coaches know when they're in trouble, but when you hear that they've actually gone out and asked for permission to speak to somebody, then can you walk it back?"
He added, "I think if they don't get permission, or for whatever reason Cassidy and the Oilers don't work it out, can you still keep Kris Knoblauch? I think that's one of the things the Oilers have to be working through today."
Semantics and Gamesmanship
Friedman also noted some nuances in the situation: "I've had some interesting reaction to it with this whole Bruce Cassidy thing... One thing is it sounds like there's a little bit of semantics here, like the general report is accurate at this point in time. And the last I checked, the Oilers had not been given permission to talk to Cassidy. I think there's a little bit of semantics there in the sense that the question is, will they get it or not?"
He continued, "I think the coaches generally are very upset... I did have somebody say to me that they felt that some people said that maybe Edmonton should make the coaching change first, like so there's an opening. But my argument to that is people check and ask for permission all the time before they fire someone... There's definitely some gamesmanship there from Vegas too. And no question about that."
Friedman pointed out that the Los Angeles Kings are also reportedly interested in Cassidy, yet they have not been blocked. "You know, one thing I haven't been able to find out is: I believe LA is interested in Cassidy, and they technically haven't made a coaching change yet either, and I don't know that they prevented the Kings from talking to him."
Cassidy as Top Candidate
Friedman agreed with the assertion that Cassidy is the top coaching candidate on the market right now. "If I was ranking a list of people available right now, Cassidy would be my guy."
