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Coaching Updates: Golden Knights Hire Stevens, Rosati, and Burke

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John Stevens and Sean Burke Vegas Golden Knights coaches (Photo- Vegas Golden Knights official website)

The Vegas Golden Knights and general manager Kelly McCrimmon announced a series of front office hires on Tuesday. John Stevens, Sean Burke, and Mike Rosati will add to Bruce Cassidy’s staff and the new guard for the Golden Knights. Stevens will serve as assistant coach to Cassidy, Burke will be the director of goaltending, and Rosati will be the manager of goaltending development and scouting.

A previous assistant coach with the Dallas Stars, Stevens has been coaching in the NHL for 17 seasons and coaching overall for 25 years. A former NHL player, Stevens had a seven-year NHL career with the Hartford Whalers and Philadelphia Flyers. Stevens has been the head coach of both the Flyers and Los Angeles Kings.

His all-time coaching record as a head coach is 171 wins, 148 losses, and 43 overtime losses. Stevens won the Stanley Cup twice with the 2012 and 2014 Kings alongside current Golden Knight Alec Martinez.

“John Stevens is a very respected NHL coach with an extensive resume that adds considerably to our staff. We are excited to add a two-time Stanley Cup winner with head coaching experience,” said McCrimmon.

Another former player, Burke played in the NHL as a goaltender for 18 years with multiple teams for an 820-game career. Burke has passed through the Phoenix Coyotes and Montreal Canadiens organizations before joining the VGK.

Rosati has been with the Golden Knights since before they were even a team and has simply been promoted from goaltending coach to his current position.

Bringing in two goaltender specialists could point toward the Golden Knights hoping Robin Lehner has a bounceback season in 2021-22. Lehner struggled in his first season since taking over full-time from Marc-Andre Fleury.

In 44 games Lehner posted a .907 save percentage and 2.83 goals-against average. He looked unsure of himself often and heard it from the Golden Knights fanbase. Hopefully, both Burke and Rosati can restore his confidence in 2022-23.