Several potential coaching targets for the Bruins, like Misha Donskov and Marco Sturm, don't have head-coaching experience in the NHL.
Don Sweeney and the Bruins have plenty of work to do this offseason.
But the first order of business for Boston is to identify what bench boss is set to lead a reworked roster in 2025-26 and beyond.
The Bruins have no shortage of options — especially when it comes to candidates who already boast plenty of experience behind the bench as an NHL head coach.
Even with names like Mike Sullivan off the board, other experienced coaches still available on the open market include names like Rick Tocchet, Gerard Gallant, Peter Laviolette, John Tortorella, Jay Woodcroft, and David Quinn.
With some of these seasoned coaches up for grabs, Sweeney and Co. could prioritize known commodities across league circles — plucking up a cage-rattler or tone-setting veteran in hopes of righting the ship following a listless 2024-25 season.
The Bruins — who are in desperate need of a turnaround campaign in 2025-26 — could be tempted by the one-year bump provided by a short-term coach with a track record of quick results like Gallant or Laviolette.
But as the Bruins begin the arduous work of building up another sustained contention window with a young roster, the case could be made that the Bruins’ ceiling could be lifted even higher if they identify and add a fresher voice behind the bench — one that could revamp Boston’s systems and grow with a retooling roster.
Advertisement:
“Communication with players nowadays is paramount,” Sweeney said on April 23. “Structure, detail and being organized is paramount. You can’t have it and survive. I want a coach that’s going to evolve a little bit offensively, and again, that’s part and parcel with being able to communicate with sometimes younger players and their stubbornness or their inexperience.
“We went through some of that this year where players were below their watermarks, and they couldn’t get back from it. … Driving internal competitiveness is something we have to get back to, and a coach has to be an extension of that. So we are going to address those things through the coaching search, and we’re not going to lower the expectations.”
There might be more risk involved with targeting a coach who has not held previous head-coaching experience in the NHL ranks.
But if the Bruins could mimic the Capitals and find the next Spencer Carbery, unearthing a poised young head coach could offer more upside than one of the many re-treads out on the market.
As the Bruins continue to assess their options, here are eight head-coaching candidates for the Bruins who have not held a post as a full-time NHL head coach … yet.
Misha Donskov
There’s plenty of chatter around Donskov — given the 47-year-old coach’s track record of success at just about every stop in his hockey journey.
Sweeney’s comments last week of there being a few Bruins coaching candidates still in the Stanley Cup Playoffs would seemingly tab Donskov as a potential target, given that he currently serves on Peter DeBoer’s staff with the Dallas Stars.
Donskov might be viewed as an outsider for some Bruins fans, but there is a connection with Sweeney.
During the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament, Donskov was the lone NHL assistant on Team Canada’s coaching staff, which was led by Jon Cooper and featured several other established head coaches in supporting roles in Bruce Cassidy, DeBoer, and Tocchet.
Team Canada’s 4 Nations GM? Sweeney.
Donskov has drawn high marks across his career when it comes to scouting, player development, analytics, and video work.
“The coaches are always looking for an edge, and he’s good at finding that,” Stars GM Jim Nill, told NHL.com of Donskov’s role for Team Canada. “He’s huge in making it all make sense. There is a lot of stuff that comes in, and he sorts through it and shows what’s important and what’s not.”
Prior to his two seasons as an assistant coach with Dallas, Donskov spent seven seasons with the Vegas Golden Knights in a variety of roles.
When he was first hired by Vegas in 2015, he helped George McPhee and the team’s front office scout and prep for an eventual expansion draft that helped the franchise carve a path to the Stanley Cup Final in its first year of existence.
After serving as director of hockey operations for Vegas’ first three seasons (2016-19), he made the switch to coaching as an assistant, ending his tenure with the Golden Knights by winning a Stanley Cup on Cassidy’s staff in 2023.
“I was lucky to have a background in coaching and development, and when analytics started gaining steam, I was able to be in the middle of that,” Donskov told NHL.com. “It’s just one part of the big picture, but I think it’s an important tool that you can use. Numbers aren’t emotional, they’re just facts, so then it’s up to you to use them as a tool and as a club in your golf bag. I do think it’s been important to go through all of that to get to where I am now.”
Donskov might be an unconventional pick, but he’s seemingly struck gold everywhere he’s gone — especially with two of the most established franchises currently operating in the Western Conference in Dallas and Vegas.
Mitch Love
If the Bruins are waiting on other coaching targets still in the playoffs, Love — currently standing as an assistant on Carbery’s staff in Washington — also makes plenty of sense.
Advertisement:
Love, 40, was a bruising player during his junior and pro hockey career, racking up 808 penalty minutes over 278 career games in the AHL ranks.
Love has already compiled an impressive track record in the coaching ranks, primarily working with the Capitals’ defensemen over the last two seasons in Washington. Prior to that, he served as head coach of the Calgary Flame’s AHL franchise from 2021-23.
Over those two years leading the Stockton Heat and Calgary Wranglers, Love posted a record of 96-33-9-3, winning the Louis A. R. Pieri Memorial Award (given to the most outstanding AHL coach) in back-to-back seasons. Love was just the third head coach in AHL history to win the Pieri Award in consecutive seasons — and the first to do it in his first two years coaching in the league.
Marco Sturm
A former Bruins forward who appeared in 302 career games with Boston, Sturm would seemingly check off plenty of boxes as a coaching hire with evident ties to the franchise — and a strong track record as a coach across several levels.
Sturm has spent the last three seasons coaching the Kings’ AHL affiliate, the Ontario Reign. Over that stretch, he has coached his club to a 119-80-17 record while helping top prospects like Quinton Byfield and Brandt Clarke develop into impact players.
The Germany native also coached his country’s Olympic team from 2015-18, helping them win a Silver Medal at the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea. Before running the show with the Reign, Sturm also was an assistant coach for four seasons in the NHL with the Kings (2018-22).
“A guy who may not be on the top of any list, but a guy who’s ambitious, a guy who understands players, a guy who has respect,” Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman said of Sturm on the “32 Thoughts” Podcast last week. “People respect Sturm. He’s got a good reputation.”
Marc Savard
Another former friend in Boston, Savard was a playmaking maestro for the Bruins from 2006-11. He scored 305 points in 304 games before concussions ended his playing career prematurely.
The poised passer has since found a new calling as a coach across several levels of competition. After coaching the OHL’s Windsor Spitfires from 2021-23 (winning back-to-back Western Conference regular-season titles), he spent the last two years as an assistant coach with the Flames and Maple Leafs.
Given his on-ice vision, it comes as little surprise that Savard’s focus in the NHL coaching ranks has revolved around running the power play. Toronto boasted the ninth-ranked power play in the NHL this past season (24.8 percent), while the Bruins ranked 29th overall with just a 15.2 percent success rate.
Jay Leach
An internal candidate with the Bruins, Leach is still held in high regard by Boston’s organization as an up-and-coming NHL coach.
The 45-year-old Leach had a four-year run as head coach of the Providence Bruins before joining the Seattle Kraken as assistant on Dave Hakstol’s staff in July 2021. Leach was not retained by Seattle following Hakstol’s firing in April 2024, paving a return to the Bruins as an assistant on Jim Montgomery (and eventually Joe Sacco’s) staff.
Leach was primarily in charge of running Boston’s defense in 2024-25, a segment of Boston’s roster that underperformed this past season, but was also impacted by critical injuries to Charlie McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm.
“They’re strong candidates, and they’ll be in the candidate pool,” Sweeney said of Leach and Sacco last week. “And along with some other really good, experienced level coaches and different levels, we’re going to find the right guy.”
Ryan Mougenel
Another in-house target for the Bruins, Mougenel has been involved with the Providence Bruins since the 2018-19 season, spending the last four years as head coach.
Over that four-season stretch, Mougenel has helped coach the P-Bruins to a 163-87-24-14 record, helping Boston develop prospects like Mason Lohrei, Matt Poitras, and others during that time.
Todd Nelson
Nelson stretched the criteria a bit when it comes to head-coaching reps in the NHL ranks, as he served as the Oilers’ interim head coach for 51 games during the 2014-15 season.
But Nelson, 55, hasn’t had a chance to earn a shot as a full-time NHL head coach since then — even if he’s cultivated quite the reputation down in the AHL ranks. After winning one Calder Cup with the Grand Rapids Griffins in 2016-17, Nelson won back-to-back Calder Cups with the Hershey Bears (the Capitals’ AHL affiliate) in 2023 and 2024.
Some of the players Nelson coached in Hershey are now helping the Capitals thrive at the NHL level, including Aliaksei Protas, Connor McMichael, and Hendrix Lapierre.
Jay Pandolfo
Pandolfo, 50, spent five seasons as an assistant coach with the Bruins before returning to his alma mater at Boston University.
During his three seasons as the Terriers’ head coach, he has led BU to three straight Frozen Fours, including a spot in the national championship game this spring.
The Winchester native and two-time Stanley Cup champion has worked with several established bench bosses in Claude Julien and Bruce Cassidy, who also helping to develop some of the top young talents in the game today between Macklin Celebrini and Lane Hutson.
Pandolfo’s stock should only continue to soar as he continues to pile up wins on Commonwealth Avenue. But even with the clear ties to Boston, Pandolfo might be better served sticking with a stable spot with BU, especially with his son, Sam, likely set to join the Terriers in the coming years after his stint with the U.S. National Team Development Program wraps.
