Ryan Craig and John Tortorella are now tied to the next big Vegas bench decision.
That is the angle picking up speed after Elliotte Friedman said on NHL Network that it is not official yet, but the expectation is Craig will be the guy.
The fit is easy to see. Craig already knows the organization, already knows the room, and already has a long history with Kelly McCrimmon.
That history matters here more than ever. Vegas is not trying to start from zero after a run that still ended in the Stanley Cup Final.
Tortorella was always a short-term answer. He said during the Final that the agreement from the start was that he would be done at the end of June.
So once that became public, Craig was always going to move near the top of the board. He is not some outside flyer being tossed around for clicks.
He has spent the last 3 seasons as head coach of the Henderson Silver Knights, and before that he spent 6 seasons as an assistant with the Golden Knights.
" Friedman on Tortorella replacement in Vegas (NHL Network): "It's not official yet, but we are expecting it will be Ryan Craig. Ryan Craig has a long history with Kelly McCrimmon"
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Vegas' coaching decision is all but confirmed after Friedman's update
Because this would feel like a clean McCrimmon move. Promote from inside, keep the voice familiar, and avoid blowing up a team that just went deep.
Craig also has real bench time now. Henderson's site says 2025-26 was his 3rd season running the Silver Knights, which means this is not a case of handing the job to a coach with no lead role at all.
The bigger question is pressure. Taking over in Vegas is not like easing into a rebuild. This is a job where the standard is already Cup-level on day 1.
That is why the McCrimmon connection keeps coming back into the story. If Vegas makes this move, it is because the front office believes Craig can keep the structure tight without losing the room.
Nothing is official yet, and that part still matters. But once Friedman frames it this way, the noise stops sounding random.
For Vegas, Ryan Craig now looks like more than a candidate. He looks like the expected next step after John Tortorella's temporary run.
Should the Golden Knights trust Ryan Craig as John Tortorella's replacement?
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