GM Brian MacLellan explains why Capitals, Peter Laviolette parted ways

GM MacLellan explains why Capitals, Laviolette parted ways originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington

ARLINGTON, Va. -- Washington Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan met with local media for 20-plus minutes on Saturday, many of which were spent discussing the team's decision to mutually part ways with head coach Peter Laviolette after three seasons.

MacLellan said the Capitals were "open" to bringing Laviolette -- whose contract was set to expire on June 30 -- back, but wanted to take some time this week to speak with players and ownership before coming to a decision. Instead, Laviolette requested a meeting with MacLellan on Friday morning, and the conversation went in a direction where both parties came to the conclusion it was time to move on.

"I think he’s a good coach. I think he’s a good person. I like working with him," MacLellan said. "I think we were open. I guess I wanted some time with players, wanted some time with everybody around. Just get some opinions and kind of go from there.”

The Capitals were largely successful in Laviolette's three seasons behind the bench, as the head coach posted a 115-78-27 record from 2020-23 with two playoff appearances. But due to various injuries and other factors, the Capitals were unable to get out of the first round in 2021 and 2022 before missing the postseason altogether for the first time in nine years this season.

Several Capitals players wished Laviolette well when asked about his departure, with multiple pointing to the difficult circumstances the head coach faced during his tenure largely due to the team's injuries. They also understand the decision to move on from Laviolette is part of the business in the NHL.

"Obviously a great man, great coach, but it’s a business," captain Alex Ovechkin said. "You can see at the trade deadline, we lost friends, great hockey players, but it’s a business. It sucks that we right now are in this position, but nothing you can do. It’s life. You just have to move on."

"We're disappointed the year went the way it did and we weren't able to play better for him," goaltender Darcy Kuemper added. "It was great playing for him and I wish him all the best going forward."

MacLellan is now tasked with finding the 20th head coach in franchise history, someone who will be responsible for getting the most out of an older core mixed with younger players. The Capitals have just six players -- Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, John Carlson, T.J. Oshie, Evgeny Kuznetsov and Tom Wilson -- still on the roster who were part of the 2018 Stanley Cup team. All but Wilson are in their thirties.

Despite relying on a veteran group, the Capitals remain confident they can build a Stanley Cup-caliber team. The franchise has made a commitment to try and compete throughout the remainder of Ovechkin's contract while he tries to catch Wayne Gretzky on the all-time goals list, something MacLellan reaffirmed again on Saturday.

However, MacLellan emphasized throughout his media session his belief the team needs to get younger throughout the roster. He understands that finding a head coach who can both get the most out of an aging core and also help develop younger players could be difficult.

"Trying to stay competitive while getting younger is going to be challenging, yes, but that’s the stage we’re at," MacLellan said. "That’s the decision we’ve made here. We want to finish out a couple careers of important players in our organization and we want to stay competitive, but we also want to get younger. So it’s a challenge to be in a position to have all three of those things, but we’re going to try."

When MacLellan hired Laviolette in 2020 as Todd Reirden's successor, part of the rationale was Laviolette's experience behind the bench. MacLellan said this time around the Capitals are "more open" to a potential first-time head coach, but the club will still need some coaches on staff with significant NHL experience due to the team's strong veteran presence.

"Probably a combination of what we’ve had would be the ideal candidate," MacLellan said. "I don’t know that we can find it, but we’ll do the best we can."

MacLellan said the first step in finding a new coach will be identifying a few names and looking at their traits. MacLellan mentioned potentially talking to assistant coaches on current playoff teams, something that cannot occur until that specific team's season concludes after the Stanley Cup playoffs. With Anaheim the only other head coaching vacancy at this time, it does not appear that the Capitals will rush to hire their next bench boss.

After missing the postseason and parting with Laviolette, the next few months are going to be one of the Capitals' most significant offseasons in recent memory. MacLellan didn't shy away from the idea of making significant roster changes, specifically mentioning the top-six forwards as an area he wants to address this offseason. Injecting youth and speed throughout the roster remains a priority.

But finding a new head coach is the first step in what's now a crucial time in shaping the future of the Capitals organization.