The Kings announced Thursday that they and assistant coach Trent Yawney mutually agreed to part ways.
That leaves at least one assistant coaching vacancy for a staff that currently has an interim head coach, Jim Hiller, and an assistant whom the Kings brought into the fold in February, D.J. Smith, whose status may also be uncertain.
“We appreciate all that Trent has contributed over the past five seasons and thank him for his dedication to the organization,” Kings general manager Rob Blake said.
Yawney joined the Kings in 2019, arriving with Todd McLellan. He had worked under McLellan previously in San Jose and Edmonton, in addition to his time as an assistant with the Ducks. Yawney may rejoin McLellan, whom the Kings sacked in February. McLellan has drawn interest from multiple teams with coaching vacancies.
At exit meetings, Blake extolled the Kings’ defensive excellence and throughout the season the Kings’ leap from 24th to second in the NHL was a significant boost to a team that was offensively challenged from December onward.
Yawney ran the Kings’ penalty kill and back end, areas that could transfer over to Smith if he were to be retained.
Like McLellan,Yawney is a native of Saskatchewan, and the two played together in the province for the Saksatoon Blades. While McLellan’s NHL career lasted just five games, Yawney played nearly 600 regular-season contests and 60 more playoff matches.
“Trent has an incredible amount of experience coaching all different types of defensemen,” McLellan told reporters when the Kings hired Yawney. “He has played with and coached several Norris Trophy winners and Hall of Famers, including Chris Chelios, Doug Wilson, Phil Housley, Rob Blake and Duncan Keith. On the whole, he has played and coached the game at a high level, and he is a tremendous teacher who relates very well to many different types of people.”
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That leaves at least one assistant coaching vacancy for a staff that currently has an interim head coach, Jim Hiller, and an assistant whom the Kings brought into the fold in February, D.J. Smith, whose status may also be uncertain.
“We appreciate all that Trent has contributed over the past five seasons and thank him for his dedication to the organization,” Kings general manager Rob Blake said.
Yawney joined the Kings in 2019, arriving with Todd McLellan. He had worked under McLellan previously in San Jose and Edmonton, in addition to his time as an assistant with the Ducks. Yawney may rejoin McLellan, whom the Kings sacked in February. McLellan has drawn interest from multiple teams with coaching vacancies.
At exit meetings, Blake extolled the Kings’ defensive excellence and throughout the season the Kings’ leap from 24th to second in the NHL was a significant boost to a team that was offensively challenged from December onward.
Yawney ran the Kings’ penalty kill and back end, areas that could transfer over to Smith if he were to be retained.
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Like McLellan,Yawney is a native of Saskatchewan, and the two played together in the province for the Saksatoon Blades. While McLellan’s NHL career lasted just five games, Yawney played nearly 600 regular-season contests and 60 more playoff matches.
“Trent has an incredible amount of experience coaching all different types of defensemen,” McLellan told reporters when the Kings hired Yawney. “He has played with and coached several Norris Trophy winners and Hall of Famers, including Chris Chelios, Doug Wilson, Phil Housley, Rob Blake and Duncan Keith. On the whole, he has played and coached the game at a high level, and he is a tremendous teacher who relates very well to many different types of people.”
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