Kevin Dean added as Bruins assistant coach

There’s no NHL season right now.

The Pittsburgh Penguins won their Stanley Cup, like many would’ve called. OK. Now what? Is there anything for hockey fans right now? Luckily for Boston Bruins fans, there was a little bit of news to slip into the world this week.

That’s because the Bruins added a coach. Well, it was more of a promotion. Kevin Dean was named to the Bruins coaching staff on Tuesday. He is expected to take over Bruce Cassidy’s previous role–the role Cassidy left in order to take over the Bruins head coaching job for Claude Julien, who the Bruins fired. Of course, Julien is now the Montreal Canadiens head coach.

Dean, who is not related to James Dean, was the Providence Bruins head coach this past season. Under him, the Bruins’ AHL affiliate had a strong year. They went 43-23-6 and made it to the Calder Cup Playoffs, although they did not win the title. In the four years prior, Dean was Cassidy’s assistant coach on the Providence Bruins.

Prior to his P-Bruins tenure, Dean coached the Lowell Devils, which became the Trenton Devils, but then they folded. He started out as an assistant for the Lowell Devils, which was a role he held for four seasons. Then, the team relocated to Trenton, New Jersey and became an East Coast Hockey League team, and he was the head coach for one year before joining Providence.

This will be Dean’s first NHL coaching job, but not his first time in the NHL. The UNH product enjoyed a 9-year NHL career, primarily for the New Jersey Devils.

He also played for the Chicago Blackhawks and the Dallas Stars.

The move indicates the team is committed to Cassidy as their head coach and are giving him a chance to build a system he is comfortable with in Boston.