Bruce Cassidy finally got one opening after Kelly McCrimmon eased Vegas' hard line on outside interview requests.
The Golden Knights' general manager said Wednesday that one NHL team was granted permission to speak with Cassidy after weeks of resistance from Vegas.
That changes the tone around one of the offseason's biggest coaching stories.
Up to this point, Vegas had held firm and blocked clubs from even getting in the room with its former Stanley Cup-winning bench boss.
McCrimmon said the approval came “near the middle” of the Stanley Cup Final, but the process never led anywhere.
That detail matters now because two of the teams most closely tied to Cassidy are no longer in the market.
-
The Los Angeles Kings and Toronto Maple Leafs have both moved on and hired new head coaches.
That leaves the Edmonton Oilers as the clearest unresolved name around the situation, especially with their search dragging through a tense summer.
Vegas finally cracks the door for Bruce Cassidy
The standoff had turned messy well before this update.
Cassidy is still under contract with Vegas, which gave the Golden Knights control over whether another team could even start formal talks.
And McCrimmon didn't hide his frustration when the story first blew open. He said the situation was “only news because Edmonton leaked it.”
That added another layer to an already heated Pacific Division angle. Sending a proven coach to a direct rival was never going to sit well inside the Vegas front office.
Cassidy also made it clear he wasn't comfortable with how this played out. In a podcast appearance, he called the situation “upsetting” and said he wants to get back behind an NHL bench.
-
League rules backed Vegas on the contract side, so there was no outside pressure forcing the club to open the door. This was a choice, even if it came later than most expected.
Now the real question is whether that permission went to Edmonton, or whether another club quietly made its move before backing off.
Either way, the story has changed. Vegas is no longer treating every request as an automatic no, and Cassidy is at least back in the conversation as a live coaching option.
Should the Oilers push hard for Bruce Cassidy?
Also read on Markerzone.com:
Big trade completed involving multiple first-round draft picks kicks off the NHL summer: Sharks strike first
