The New Jersey Devils announced that they would not be bringing back two of their assistant coaches.
#NEWS: We have mutually agreed to part ways with Assistant Coach Alain Nasreddine, as his contract will not be renewed. Additionally, Assistant Coach Mark Recchi has been relieved of his duties.https://t.co/e9G7fSQpX7
— New Jersey Devils (@NJDevils) May 4, 2022
The Devils and Alain Nasreddine have agreed to part ways, while the team relieved Mark Recchi of his duties. Nasreddine served as New Jersey’s interim head coach in 2019-20 and has been with the club since 2015. Meanwhile, Recchi has been with the Devils since 2020-21 and was an assistant with the Pittsburgh Penguins for six seasons before that.
Recchi had a remarkable NHL career as a player. He is eighth all-time in games played with 1,652, scoring 577 goals and 956 assists. However, he was in charge of the third-worst powerplay in the NHL last season, with a net powerplay percentage of 9.3. Under Nasreddine, Jersey’s net penalty kill was 16th in the NHL at 83 percent.
Despite the desires of many analysts and fans, it looks as though New Jersey will stick with head coach Lindy Ruff for next season.
The Devils were 14th in the Eastern Conference with a 27-46-9 record, missing the playoffs for a fourth straight season.
Over at FanDuel Sportsbook, the Colorado Avalanche are the favorites to win the Stanley Cup at +300.
