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Maple Leafs Hire Former Red Wings HC as Assistant

The Toronto Maple Leafs gain an assistant coach with head coaching experience as they look to end their Stanley Cup drought.

Scott Salomon

Mar 28, 2024; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; Detroit Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde looks on from behind the bench against the Carolina Hurricanes during the second period at PNC Arena.
Mar 28, 2024; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; Detroit Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde looks on from behind the bench against the Carolina Hurricanes during the second period at PNC Arena. / James Guillory-Imagn Images
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The Toronto Maple Leafs have added experience to their coaching staff, as they hired former Detroit Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde as an assistant coach.

Lalonde, 52, joins the Leafs staff after he was head coach of the Detroit Red Wings for three seasons from 2022-24 until he was fired unceremoniously back in December. He joins a Leafs staff that includes assistants Mike Van Ryn and Marc Savard, as well as goaltending coach Curtis Sanford.

During his tenure with the Red Wings, Lalonde coached 198 games with a record of 89-86-23 as the team suffered through a phase where they were looking to get younger and went through a rebuild. He was fired by the Red Wings following a 13-17-4 start to this past season.

The New York native was also an assistant coach with the Tampa Bay Lightning. He was a key component on the staff that guided the Lightning to back-to-back Stanley Cup championships in 2020 and 2021.

Before Lalonde joined forces with Tampa Bay, he served as the head coach of the American Hockey League's Iowa Wild from 2016-18, compiling a 69-58-17-8 record.

He also spent two seasons with the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye (2014-16), guiding the team to a 97-35-7-5 mark.

During his first season with the Walleye in 2014-15, Lalonde led them to a 50-15-5-2 mark, winning the Brabham Cup as the ECHL's regular-season champion, and earning Lalonde recognition with the John Brophy Award as the ECHL's Coach of the Year.

Lalonde was also an assistant coach with the United States national team at the world hockey championship in 2023 and 2024.

The Leafs assistant coaching position became available last week when the Seattle Kraken hired Lane Lambert, who was an associate coach in Toronto, as its head coach.

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Scott Salomon
SCOTT SALOMON

Scott Salomon joined On SI in April 2024, covering breaking news and analysis for various On SI channels. Scott covers the NFL, College Football, MLB, and the WNBA. Scott has been covering local and national sports for over 35 years. Scott graduated from the University of Miami School of Communication and the St. Thomas University School of Law. Scott is also a member of the PFWA and the FWAA. Follow Scott Salomon on X @ScottSalomonNFL.

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