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Tampa Bay Lightning assistant coach Derek Lalonde, in center, and head coach Jon Cooper talk with players on the ice during with the team during Lightning playoff training camp at Amalie Arena on July 14, 2020 in Tampa.
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Briggs: The perfect hire for Red Wings? Former Walleye coach Derek Lalonde

TAMPA BAY TIMES

Briggs: The perfect hire for Red Wings? Former Walleye coach Derek Lalonde

Maybe it’s just me, but anyone else feel bad for the good sports fans of Salt Lake City?

Just their luck, they’ve had the paths of their pro teams blocked by the Jordan Bulls and these powerhouse Walleye, all in the same lifetime.

Also, now that our homer bona fides are properly established, another question: Should the Red Wings hire former Toledo coach Derek Lalonde on the first day he becomes available? Or, for the sake of appearances, wait until the next day?

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I bring this up because of recent developments in Hockeytown (and our hockey town).

JoAnne Carner holding the trophy after winning the 1956 U.S. Girls' Junior Championship which was held at Heather Downs Country Club, Toledo, Ohio.
David Briggs
Briggs: Meet Big Mama, the long-bombing, 83-year-old golfer who made her name at unlikely Toledo course

As if the times aren’t high enough for the Walleye — who polished off the Utah Grizzlies on Saturday night to cruise into the Kelly Cup Finals — one of their own could be set to take over their parent club in Detroit.

At least he should be.

The stars are perfectly aligned, the Wings in need of a new coach after moving on from Jeff Blashill, and LaLonde — one of the NHL’s top deputies — ready for a promotion.

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Actually, more than ready.

Unless Lalonde, 49, has changed in the six years since leaving the Walleye, he’s the total package. He’s as well-liked by his players as he is respected by them. And the guy’s a winner, proving himself at every level.

Recall his two seasons in Toledo, where upon arrival in 2014, he inherited a team that had wheezed to just 49 points the year before. He rebuilt the roster, revamped the culture, and immediately turned the Fish into championship contenders. The Walleye won the Brabham Cup with 107 points in his first year — marking the greatest turnaround in ECHL history — and followed that up with another 47 wins the next season.

He has since showed the same touch in the AHL — he led an Iowa Wild franchise coming off three straight losing seasons to consecutive winning ones — and in his four seasons in the NHL with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

While it’s never easy to gauge the impact of any one assistant, I’m going to go out on a limb and suggest the top aide to Lightning coach Jon Cooper hasn’t held the franchise back. Tampa Bay is in pursuit of its third straight Stanley Cup championship.

Lalonde’s time as an NHL head coach is coming. It might as well be with the Red Wings, no?

While Detroit GM Steve Yzerman hasn’t tipped his hand, Lalonde is almost certainly on his short list, and, if the franchise opts against recycling a big name, he just might be at the top of it. It’s worth reminding that Yzerman hired Lalonde in Tampa Bay.

“Obviously I think the world of Derek,” said Dan Watson, who was an assistant under Lalonde in Toledo and succeeded him at the helm. “I know what he is all about. I've seen how he works behind the scenes. I've seen him build a team. I've seen how he communicates and how he creates a positive culture. I think it would be a good fit [in Detroit]. He would be a good fit anywhere in the NHL as a head coach. He'll get that opportunity sooner rather than later.”

Now, we should note, if Lalonde lands a top job, that could help pull Watson away from Toledo. (It’s not hard to envision a scenario in which Lalonde goes to Detroit and Watson — who knows exactly how his old boss wants the game taught — takes over the Wings’ AHL affiliate in Grand Rapids.)

But that would be a well-earned promotion, too.

As much as Watson appreciates Toledo — and as good as he has it here — he deserves the chance to prove himself at the next level. In four full seasons as head coach, the 43-year-old has led the Walleye to a pair of regular-season championships and now a second trip to the Kelly Cup finals. Lalonde once said it himself: “Watson has a skill set above this league. ... He has an NHL-good mind for the game.”

So did Cincinnati coach Jason Payne after the Walleye’s first-round series win over the Cyclones: “I respect Watty like crazy. ... He has a bright future ahead of him. I can see him moving up to the next level. It's just a matter of time.”

We’ll see when. 

For now, all we know is the Cup-bound Walleye are on the move.

And there’s a good chance their old coach will be, too. Here’s hoping it’s just up the road.

First Published May 29, 2022, 10:24 p.m.

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Tampa Bay Lightning assistant coach Derek Lalonde, in center, and head coach Jon Cooper talk with players on the ice during with the team during Lightning playoff training camp at Amalie Arena on July 14, 2020 in Tampa.  (TAMPA BAY TIMES)
Tampa Bay Lightning assistant coach Derek Lalonde, left, visits with player Mathew MacDougall (90) during a team practice on Friday (9/15/18) at the Ice Sports Forum in Brandon during the team's 2018-2019 season training camp.  (TAMPA BAY TIMES)
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