Top head coach candidate David Carle is no longer in consideration for the Chicago Blackhawks head coaching gig, who’s left?

Elliotte Friedman reported on April 26 that David Carle, the top head coach candidate for the Chicago Blackhawks, withdrew from consideration for the Hawks’ head coaching vacancy. Scott Powers of the Athletic confirmed the news with internal sources. 

Hearing that David Carle has withdrawn from consideration for the Chicago Blackhawks coaching job. 

The Blackhawks definitely made an aggressive pursuit

— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) April 26, 2025

Why was David Carle the top candidate to begin with? 

The Blackhawks are taking the next step in their rebuild. The next real step. With Kyle Davidson’s drafted prospects beginning to make their way to the NHL, the Blackhawks roster is going to be young. The next coach needs to be someone who works well with young players and can foster a winning culture. 

David Carle’s resume included two national championships and three Frozen Four appearances with the University of Denver and two back-to-back gold medals at the World Juniors with Team USA. Carle seemed like the perfect fit for the Blackhawks, despite a lack of coaching experience at the NHL level. 

Unfortunately for the Blackhawks, Carle was never in a hurry for the NHL’s massive paychecks. Carle’s current job in Denver gives him an open schedule and family time. The job security is infinitely better in Denver, where he built the program. Davidson fired head coach Luke Richardson in the middle of a meaningless season where the goal was “don’t finish last.” 

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From Carle’s point of view, staying in Denver likely makes sense. However, if Carle signs with an NHL team, that raises a whole slew of serious concerns about what is happening in Chicago. 

So who’s left? There are a lot of names, and more to come following a team’s departure in the playoffs. Out of the current pool of head coaching candidates, here are my three favorites.

Jay Woodcroft

Jay Woodcroft coached the Edmonton Oilers from 2022 to 2023 with one full season of NHL head coaching experience. Woodcroft was also the head coach for the Oilers’ AHL affiliate, the Bakersfield Condors, from 2018 to 2022. Woodcroft was fired in 2023 after the Oilers had a disappointing 3-9-1 record to start the season, despite an excellent overall record of  79-41-13. 

Woodcroft differs from the usual retread of head coaching names that get recycled. The Blackhawks do need someone with NHL experience, but they don’t need someone with old-school methods (which I personally like), i.e., a John Tortorella. 

Hiring a coach who was recently fired might not be the best move. When a coach does get fired (which is inevitable), they make their improvements on their “off-time.” Woodcroft has been out of a job since 2023. That’s a good amount of time to tighten up things you needed to improve. 

Beyond having worked well with phenoms like Connor McDavid, Woodcroft pushes his players to play to their offensive strengths. He coached a team with a winning record, a team that made it to the Stanley Cup Final without him. I think he is a solid candidate for the Blackhawks.

Todd Nelson

Scott Powers brought up a very interesting name in his most recent article detailing the Blackhawks’ coaching candidates. Todd Nelson has head coaching experience in the AHL going back to 2010 and has three Calder Trophies to his name, two of which were back-to-back championships with the Hershey Bears in 2023 and 2024 (one of which I was in attendance for when they beat the Coachella Valley Firebirds). Nelson also has two championships as a head coach in the UHL. 

Nelson’s NHL coaching experience is limited to 46 games as the interim head coach of the Edmonton Oilers in 2014. Seven seasons were spent as an assistant coach in the NHL with the Atlanta Thrashers, Edmonton Oilers, and Dallas Stars. 

I find Nelson an interesting candidate for the Blackhawks because he would be a newer face with some NHL experience, but more importantly, Nelson has a history of coaching winning teams. 

Mike Sullivan

On Monday morning, April 28, the Pittsburgh Penguins announced that they had officially parted ways with long-time head coach Mike Sullivan, as reported by Elliotte Friedman. Of all the head coaching names that might be called “re-treads,” this is one that I would be very much ok with. 

Sullivan has coached the Penguins since 2015 and led the team to two Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017. This past season was his first below a win percentage of .500, and a lot of that has to do with the Penguins’ roster rather than Sullivan. 

The pedigree that Sullivan brings is notable. He’s a winning coach with proven experience. In the past, he has received some criticism for prioritizing veterans over young players. Sullivan coached a Penguins team that was playoff-bound every season until 2022. With a team that has Sidney Crosby, Kris Letang, and Evgeni Malkin, it’s not hard to see why. 

Sullivan worked with Bryan Rust and Connor Sheary when they both entered the NHL in 2014 and 2015, respectively. Jake Guentzel has developed into an excellent player since debuting in 2016. Most recently, Penguins prospect Rutger McGroarty was a player that Sullivan worked with towards the end of the season. 

When Sullivan became head coach of the Penguins in 2015, they weren’t rebuilding like the Blackhawks. Criticism of Sullivan not playing young players is unfair. The Blackhawks are going to be a young team, and only getting younger. Sullivan will be just fine with Connor Bedard, Frank Nazar, and anyone else. 

But will Sullivan want to come to Chicago?

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