NHL coaching changes tracker: Oilers fill final vacancy by hiring Mike Babcock

The NHL offseason is always full of drama, and it usually begins with the coaching carousel.

During the year, many teams made coaching changes as they tried to spark their clubs for a playoff push, with some finding more success than others. After the regular season ended, teams then made final decisions on coaches who were in charge during disappointing campaigns.

Typically, teams that fire head coaches are facing high expectations or undergoing regime changes, as they seek a new voice in the locker room moving forward. In recent years, it has seemed like no head coach is truly safe as long as teams feel there is a better option on the market.

Here's a look at the coaching changes in 2026.

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2026 NHL head coaching changes

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NHL hired coaches 2026

Mike Babcock, Edmonton Oilers

The Oilers close out the NHL's coaching changes by hiring former Detroit Red Wings and Maple Leafs head coach, Mike Babcock. The 63-year-old got his start with th eDucks, but coached Detroit for 10 seasons and won the Stanley Cup in 2008 while making the playoffs every season with the team from 2006 to 2015.

When Babcock became Toronto's head coach in 2015, success didn't follow him as he failed to win a playoff series with the team. Additionally, the Columbus Blue Jackets initially hired him in 2023, but he resigned before ever coaching a game.

Babcock is a controversial hire as he rubbed players the wrong way many times as a head coach. The reason he resigned from Columbus is because of an incident that occurred in the offseason when he went through his players' phones. The NHL, who investigated Babcock, had to clear the way for the Oilers to make this hire.

Ryan Craig, Golden Knights

Vegas promoted AHL coach Ryan Craig as the new head coach, replacing John Tortorella in that position. Tortorella was the interim coach for the playoffs when the team fired Bruce Cassidy, but that was only to finish out the season before making a change in the offseason.

Craig is a 44-year-old former player who has been with the Golden Knights since the team's first season in 2017-18. He was an assistant coach for the first six seasons of his Vegas career, and has spent the past three years as the team's AHL head coach.

Jim Hiller, Maple Leafs

A long Maple Leafs search settles on Hiller, whom the Kings fired midseason after 2.5 years in Los Angeles. Hiller led the Kings to two-straight playoff appearances in 2024 and 2025, but lost to the Oilers in the first round in each of those years.

Hiller has experience with the Maple Leafs organization, as he was an assistant with the team for four seasons under Mike Babcock. The 57-year-old will bring familiarity with the organization to his new job, but with that comes the pressure to succeed with one of the NHL's most notable franchises.

Peter Laviolette, Kings

The 61-year-old Laviolette will take over the Kings for his seventh head coaching stint since his first job in 2001. Previously, Laviolette coached the Islanders, Hurricanes, Flyers, Predators, Capitals and Rangers, leading Carolina to a Stanley Cup championship in 2006 and both Philadelphia and Nashville to Stanley Cup Final appearances. Laviolette's 846 wins is currently the seventh-most by a coach in NHL history.  

Laviolette takes over a Kings team hoping to make a run at the Stanley Cup Final next year. Los Angeles has lost in the first round in each of the last five seasons, and the team has not made it to the second round since it won the Stanley Cup in 2014.

Manny Malhotra, Canucks

In the first coaching hire of the season, Vancouver elected to promote Manny Malhotra from the team's AHL affiliate Abbotsford Canucks to the pros, giving the former Canuck player his first crack at an NHL head coaching gig. With Abbotsford, Malhotra coached the team to a Calder Cup win in his first season in 2024-25. The club missed the playoffs this last season. 

The move comes on the heels of an overhaul in the front office, with Henrik and Daniel Sedin re-joining the organization as co-presidents of hockey operations, while Ryan Johnson takes over as general manager. It's also no coincidence that Malhotra's son, Caleb, is one of the top NHL Draft prospects and with Vancouver holding the No. 3 pick, it's very likely the father-son duo could be reunited on the Canucks. 

Pete DeBoer, Islanders

Like the Golden Knights, the Islanders fired head coach Patrick Roy late in the regular season, hoping to ignite the team by hiring Pete DeBoer. Unlike Vegas, though, the Islanders missed the playoffs as their struggles continued.

Still, the Islanders got a jump start on hiring DeBoer, who would've been a hot coaching candidate in the offseason for teams making a coaching change. DeBoer brings a wealth of experience with many deep playoff runs despite never winning a Stanley Cup title.

Rick Bowness, Blue Jackets

Veteran coach Rick Bowness took over for the Blue Jackets in the middle of January, leading Columbus to a 21-11-5 record in the final 37 games. However, the Blue Jackets failed to make the playoffs in the final week of the regular season despite playing better under Bowness.

After the final game of the season, Bowness heavily criticized the team's effort while making the case that he would change the culture if he got the chance to come back. It seemed like that speech worked, as Columbus hired Bowness full-time for the 2026-27 season and beyond. The Blue Jackets mark the eighth team for whom Bowness has been a head coach.