Morning Sports Update
“I do think Vegas is clearly within their contractual rights to do what they’re doing.”
Bruce Cassidy near the end of his time coaching the Golden Knights in March, 2026. AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes
June 3, 2026 | 10:56 AM
4 minutes to read
Bruce Cassidy is still stuck: After he was surprisingly fired by the Golden Knights in late March, former Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy has remained in at least a partial public spotlight, commentating on games as a TV analyst and even correctly predicting a David Pastrnak goal before it happened earlier in the playoffs.
Yet Cassidy would rather be discussing a potential next head coaching role, a thing he is currently blocked from doing by his former employer. The Golden Knights, which proceeded to march back to the Stanley Cup Final under the coaching direction of John Tortorella (who replaced Cassidy), have failed to grant Cassidy (who had one year left on his contract when he was fired) permission to interview with both the Oilers and Kings.
Both teams have coaching vacancies and would like to interview Cassidy — who spent a combined 10 years in both Boston and Las Vegas, never suffering a losing season. Las Vegas leadership hasn’t budged, however, citing the team’s current playoff run as the organization’s sole focus in the short term.
On Tuesday, NHL league leadership was asked about the issue during a press conference that included league commissioner Gary Bettman and deputy commissioner Bill Daly.
“Obviously, we don’t find it unreasonable because we’re allowing it to happen,” Daly told reporters about the Golden Knights’ decision to block Cassidy’s interviews. “I do think Vegas is clearly within their contractual rights to do what they’re doing.
“I also, and we also, understand and appreciate that they’re on a Stanley Cup run right now, and they don’t need the distractions, necessarily, from a coach signing somewhere else,” Daly added. “So we’ll get to the end of the season, and we’ll see where we go from there.”
Exactly what Cassidy has to do with the team’s championship run has not been elaborated on by Las Vegas (especially as the now-former coach has nothing to do with the team at this point). The two potential teams he was set to interview with, Edmonton and Las Angeles, are Pacific Division opponents of Las Vegas. Golden Knights management may just not want to hand a potential rival any advantage.
Cassidy has bluntly stated his frustration with the process.
“I’m getting paid money to sit at home,” Cassidy told Michael Russo of The Athletic. “Well, I’d rather go to work, to be honest. I would. I’d rather earn it. So that’s my position on that. I’d give [the salary] up tomorrow and bet on myself if that freed me up to go interview, but it doesn’t. So that’s the problem.”
Still, the league has been unmoved by the matter.
“When you sign and insist upon a long-term contract, there are certain, under league policies, consequences of that, and so where we find ourselves is completely reasonable,” Bettman, the league’s commissioner since 1993, said at the press conference.
In the end, Cassidy simply just wants another job.
“I have no problem telling the whole world that I’ve respected Vegas. They’re in the playoffs. I understand that,” he told Russo. “I will tell you, I think they can do two things at once, but I get it. I get what their focus is. I understand that. But I do want to go back to work.”
Trivia: Bruce Cassidy ranks third all-time in Bruins history for wins by a head coach. Who ranks first?
(Answer at the bottom).
Hint: He had tenures coaching the Canadiens both before and after his time in Boston.
Scores and schedules:
The Red Sox lost to the Orioles 4-2 on Tuesday. The two teams will play again this evening at Fenway Park at 6:45 p.m.
In the NHL, the Golden Knights won Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Carolina Hurricanes.
And in the NBA, Game 1 of the Finals between the Knicks and the Spurs begins in San Antonio tonight at 8:30 p.m.
More from Boston.com:
A Massachusetts success story: Though he was born in Haiti, Frantzdy Pierrot grew up in Melrose, Mass. He now plays professionally in Greece, and will represent Haiti in the upcoming World Cup. Amid an impressive 4-0 friendly win over New Zealand on Tuesday, Pierrot scored the third goal.
¡YA ES GOLEADA! 🔥 Haití se está divirtiendo contra Nueva Zelanda con el 3-0 definido por Frantzdy Pierrot. #AmistosoEnFOX #FOXDeportes pic.twitter.com/93OYoyCQ1P
— FOX Deportes (@FOXDeportes) June 3, 2026
On this day: In 2001, Manny Ramirez hit a towering home run against the Blue Jays that made its way into the fifth deck at the Rogers Centre. Cited at an estimated 491 feet, the moonshot was certainly one of the longest home runs in the history of the ballpark. The Red Sox won in the end, 5-4.
Daily highlight: Tomas Hertl connected with Colton Sissons on a nice give-and-go before the former fired a wrist-shot into the upper corner of the net in the Golden Knights’ Game 1 victory in the Stanley Cup Final on Tuesday night.
Trivia answer: Claude Julien
Hayden Bird is a sports staff writer for Boston.com, where he has worked since 2016. He covers all things sports in New England.
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