Ryan Craig is next.
The Vegas Golden Knights made official what has been long expected, naming one of the organization’s longest mainstays as their fifth coach in team history, the team announced Wednesday.
The decision comes after John Tortorella was informed Tuesday that he would not be returning to the team following an improbable playoff run that put the Knights two wins away from a Stanley Cup championship.
Instead, the Knights are beginning a new era, promoting Craig after spending three years as the coach of Henderson from the American Hockey League.
Craig, 44, has been with the organization from its inception. He was hired as an assistant coach on inaugural coach Gerard Gallant’s staff in 2017.
He not only stayed through Gallant’s tenure, but was also a lead assistant on Pete DeBoer’s staff from 2020-22, and through Bruce Cassidy’s first season with the Knights in 2023.
Cassidy was fired on March 29 and replaced by Tortorella. The Knights finished 7-0-1 to clinch a fifth Pacific Division title in nine years.
That run sparked an unthinkable run that concluded with the Knights making the Stanley Cup Final for the third time in nine years. The Knights lost in six games to the Carolina Hurricanes.
Craig was named coach of the Silver Knights two weeks after the Knights completed their Stanley Cup championship run.
Craig led the Silver Knights to the Calder Cup Playoffs this past season, anchored by a 17-3-3 run to close the regular season.
The team won its first Calder Cup Playoff series in team history by sweeping the San Jose Barracuda, but fell to the Colorado Eagles in the second round in four games.
Craig played 14 professional seasons, but was mostly a mainstay in the AHL. He was picked 255th overall by the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2002 and played in 198 career NHL games.
A captain through most of his AHL tenure, Craig played 711 AHL games.
Craig is responsible for aiding in the development of some of the Knights’ young players, such as undrafted forwards Braeden Bowman and Kai Uchacz, who made their NHL debuts this season.
Goaltender Carl Lindbom, the Knights’ top netminder prospect, also made his NHL debut this season.
This is a developing story. Check back later for updates.
Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.
