The Bruins fired Jim Montgomery in November and named Joe Sacco as the interim coach for the remainder of the season. Boston officials have said Sacco will be a candidate in a more extensive coaching search this offseason.

Todd Nelson has won five different minor league championships as head coach in the last two decades. That includes back-to-back titles for the Washington Capitals' AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears, the past two seasons. He also aided the Dallas Stars to the Stanley Cup Final in 2020 as an assistant who heavily guided team tactics.

Laviolette departs with a 94–59–11 regular-season record and a 10–5–1 playoff mark in New York. He became the sixth NHL coach fired after two seasons or less with the franchise and the second straight Rangers coach to be dismissed after two years.