The Hartford Wolf Pack may be close to hiring a new coach for the 2024-25 season. Multiple reports indicate that Grant Potulny, who recently resigned as coach at Northern Michigan University, will join the New York Rangers organization to coach their American hockey affiliate.
“I heard Potulny is going to Hartford,” NHL insider Elliotte Friedman said on his latest 32 Thoughts podcast.
Speculation that Potulny will end up with the Wolf Pack grew Wednesday when Kirk MacDonald landed the coaching job at Scranton-Wilkes Barre after Potulny was also rumored to be in consideration for that job.
Potulny recently resigned after seven seasons as Northern Michigan’s coach, citing his interest in pursuing a position in professional hockey. He went 128-113-17 with the Wildcats, including four seasons with 20-plus wins.
NMU went 12-16-6 last season under Potulny, who was previously an assistant at his alma mater, the University of Minnesota.
The 44-year-old North Dakota native was also a four-time assist for the United States at the World Junior Championships, helping them capture gold medals in 2013 and 2017 and a bronze in 2018.
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If the Rangers hire Potulny, he would be the second consecutive young coach to take his first professional head coaching job with the Wolf Pack. Kris Knoblauch had been the head coach of two junior teams and an assistant for the Philadelphia Flyers, before being named coach of the Wolf Pack ahead of the 2019-20 season.
Knoblauch, who served as the Rangers’ interim coach for six games when David Quinn was in the COVID-19 protocol in 2021, was hired by the Edmonton Oilers last Nov. 12 to be their coach, and currently has them on the Stanley Cup Final. They trail the Florida Panthers 3-2 in the best-of-7 series after a 5-3 win in Game 5 on Tuesday.
Steve Smith stepped in as the Wolf Pack’s interim coach when Knoblauch left to work for the Oilers. Smith led the Wolf Pack to the Atlantic Division finals, where they were swept by the Hershey Bears.
Potulny played six seasons in the AHL after being selected 157th overall by the Ottawa Senators in the 2000 NHL Draft. Potulny, a forward, scored 145 points (73 goals, 72 assists) in 290 games in the AHL. AHL.
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