John Tortorella Won't Return as Vegas Golden Knights Head Coach

The team announced on Tuesday that John Tortorella won’t return behind the bench next season. 

“We thank Torts for the guidance he provided our team since joining the organization in March,” Golden Knights general manager Kelly McCrimmon said in a statement. 

McCrimmon said that when Tortorella was brought in at the end of the regular season, it was to bring an “immediate impact” to the team. Something, he said, proved to be worth the coaching change.

“Torts’ experience and leadership proved to be the boost that we were looking for, helping guide us to the Stanley Cup Final,” he said. “We are grateful for Torts’ passion, sincerity, and commitment to our organization, and we wish him and his family the best.”

There’s been no word on whether it was a team decision or if Tortorella chose to move on. When asked after the team’s Game 6 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes that ended their season if he wanted to keep coaching the team, the 67-year-old coach said that he liked the team but hadn’t thought about it yet.

“I haven’t even—I got to swallow this [loss] a little bit,” he said.

Tortorella was hired by Vegas on March 30 after the team fired Bruce Cassidy. Under Torterella, the Golden Knights finished the regular season 7-0-1 to move from third to first in the Pacific Division. He then guided the team back to the Stanley Cup Final for the third time in franchise history.

Counting the last eight regular season games and the playoffs, Vegas went 21-8-1 with Tortorellla has head coach.

With him officially not coming back, the search is on for the fifth head coach in franchise history. One candidate many expect to be a favorite for the job is Henderson Silver Knights head coach Ryan Craig. 

Craig has spent the last three seasons with Vegas’ AHL affiliate as head coach. After missing the playoffs his first two years, he guided the Silver Knights to a 39-21-7-5 record and a playoff series win in 2025-26. 

Before coaching in the AHL, Craig was an assistant coach with Vegas from 2017 to 2023 under all of the team’s first three head coaches.