Pittsburgh Penguins make late summer change to their coaching staff

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Matt Garland
August 18, 2022 (5:19 PM)

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The Pittsburgh Penguins have promoted Todd Reirden to associate coach and signed him to a two-year contract extension, it was announced today by general manager Ron Hextall.

"Todd plays an important role on our coaching staff. He's had a proven impact on the defensemen and contributes to the coaching staff as a whole with his wealth of knowledge from over a decade as an NHL coach. We are excited to extend his contract."

Reirden, 51, has served as the Penguins' assistant coach since 2020 and oversees the team's defensive group and power-play unit. Under his guidance, the Penguins' power play (23.7%) finished fourth-best in the league in 2020-21, and their goals-against average (2.71) ranked fifth-best in the NHL in 2021-22. The 12-year NHL coaching veteran has helped the Penguins to an 83-41-14 record since 2020, with their .652 winning percentage ranking seventh-best in the league in that span.

"As a coaching staff we value Todd's knowledge, experience and passion for the game," said head coach Mike Sullivan, "He challenges us, as coaches, to be better every day and his relationships with the players are invaluable. He is deserving of this promotion and we are excited for him."

Prior to his time with the Penguins, Reirden spent six seasons on the Washington Capitals coaching staff, serving as head coach from 2018-20. He was an assistant coach from 2014-16, and associate coach from 2016-18, where he helped the Capitals to their first Stanley Cup Championship in franchise history in 2018.

Reirden is currently on his second tour of duty with Pittsburgh, as he was an assistant coach with the Penguins from 2010-14, where he assumed a similar role, working with the team's defensemen and power-play units.

In 12 NHL seasons as an NHL coach, Reirden has two Stanley Cup championships (2009, PIT; 2018, WSH), nine 100-point campaigns in nine 82-game seasons and 66 playoff wins in 12 postseason appearances. His teams have ranked in the NHL's top-5 for power-play percentage in seven seasons, and have finished in the top-10 for goals-against average in six seasons.

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