Stars Expected to Hire Oilers Assistant As New Head Coach

Karl Rasmussen | Jun 29, 2025

Edmonton Oilers assistant Glen Gulutzan and head coach Kris Knoblauch talk on the bench. / Andy Devlin/NHLI via Getty Images

The Dallas Stars have honed in on their replacement for head coach Pete DeBoer. After parting ways with DeBoer following an exit in the Western Conference finals, the Stars are reportedly closing on a deal with their next coach.

According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, the Stars are nearing a deal to hire Edmonton Oilers assistant coach Glen Gulutzan as their new head coach.

It would be a reunion between Dallas and Gulutzan, where he previously served as the team's head coach from 2011 to '13. During his two-year stint with the team more than a decade ago, the Stars posted a record of 60-54-9 but failed to reach the playoffs in either season.

After coaching in Dallas, he landed on his feet as the head coach of the Calgary Flames in 2016. He'd spend two seasons with the Flames and made his lone coaching playoff appearance in the '16-'17 postseason, but Calgary was swept by the Anaheim Ducks in the first round.

Since 2018, Gulutzan has been an assistant coach with the Oilers, who have been to the Stanley Cup Final in each of the last two seasons.

Now, he'll hope to provide the missing ingredient for the Stars to get over the hump after having reached but failed to advance past the conference final in each of the last three seasons. The Stars haven't won a Stanley Cup since 1999, and they're hoping bringing Gulutzan back to the organization can help them bring another title to Dallas.

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