Bruce Cassidy wants to go back to work.
The former Vegas Golden Knights head coach said Thursday on the Spittin' Chiclets podcast that it is "upsetting" that his old team has denied multiple interview requests for a new gig despite firing him in late March.
"There was two teams that asked, it’s public knowledge now, and I would like to talk to them. I want to go to work. I’m a hockey coach," Cassidy said.
The Golden Knights reportedly withheld permission from the Edmonton Oilers to speak with Cassidy about their head-coaching vacancy earlier in May.
In addition to the Oilers, the Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks and Los Angeles Kings are also in the coaching market.
Cassidy, who led the Golden Knights to the Stanley Cup in 2022, dispelled the notion that he could simply resign in order to speak with other franchises.
"Once you're fired, your contract's basically terminated, but the one thing people don't realize is ... you have no-compete clauses, so I can't resign today and go work for someone tomorrow," Cassidy said. "I can't work until Vegas gives me permission until this contract's up, which is at the end of next season. So if I resign, all I do is not get paid."
Vegas replaced Cassidy with John Tortorella and is now set to play in the Stanley Cup Final after sweeping the Presidents' Trophy-winning Colorado Avalanche. It will meet either the Carolina Hurricanes or Montreal Canadiens with the championship on the line.
Central to the Golden Knights' success has been Mitch Marner, who leads the NHL with 21 points (seven goals, 14 assists) in the playoffs, overcoming years of doubt about his ability to perform in the post-season with the Maple Leafs.
“I'm happy for him. He had a tough go in Toronto. I was out west for a lot of it. I saw him early on his career when I was in Boston. We beat him in a seven-game series, I thought he was their best player," Cassidy said.
"But right now he's having a lot of fun out there and he's got other people around him. If he’s not producing for a couple of games, it’s not the end of the world in Vegas, where in Toronto, it’d probably get scrutinized a lot more.”
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