Gerard Gallant
Recent rumors have said that Hughes and St. Louis met with Gerard Gallant. It's easier to believe these rumors if we get a more credible source, but Gallant does make sense as a potential candidate.
Laraque's news: someone he knows was in a café in Toronto and saw Kent Hughes, MSL and Gerard Gallant together.
— Habs Chronicle (@HabsChronicle) November 11, 2024
That's it.
Gallant has experience with getting teams over the hump. He led the Florida Panthers to a good turnaround before the infamous firing that most would admit he didn't deserve. After that, he became the first head coach in Vegas and advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals in their inaugural year.
It didnt' take long for the New York Rangers to hire Gallant after the Golden Knights fired him in 2019-20 (fired again while he had a winning record) and he led them to the conference finals. Gallant may not have much postseason success, but he has a stellar 369-262-70 regular season record.