‘Help Wanted’ Sign Hanging Outside Penguins’ Coaching Offices

Dan Muse has been head coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins for about a week, and is starting to settle into his new position.

When he’ll know what the rest of his staff looks like is far from certain, however.

So is whether incumbent goalie coach Andy Chiodo will be part of it.

The other three members of Mike Sullivan’s on-the-bench staff in 2024-25 have moved on to other organizations. David Quinn and Ty Hennes have joined Sullivan with the New York Rangers, while Mike Vellucci accepted a job with Chicago.

While Chiodo’s future is uncertain, president of hockey operations/GM Kyle Dubas confirmed that video coach Madison Nikkel will stay with the Penguins.

“I think he’s one of the best at his job in the league,” he said. “We’re very fortunate to have him. He won’t go away.”

Dubas added that, “with regards to all other members of the staff, Dan will go through that process with them.”

Chiodo’s contract, like that of Vellucci and Hennes, is expiring, but Dubas said previously that the coach who replaced Sullivan would be given the option of retaining him.

Muse said during his introductory press conference Wednesday at PPG Paints Arena that the search for his assistants began the day he was hired, and that “we’re having a lot of discussions” with candidates for those positions.

“We’re going through the process now of figuring out what that staff is going to look like,” he said. “You want to make sure it’s going to be a fit here within the group, within the organization. From there, I’m looking for a little bit of variety, different experiences, different backgrounds. In ways, different ideas, but where we still have the same base concepts that we believe in moving forward.”

Although Muse spoke of Chiodo in effusive terms — calling him “clearly an amazing human being and a great coach” — he did not commit to having him on the staff for the coming season.

In addition to beginning to construct a staff, one of Muse’s first acts after accepting the job was to contact veterans Sidney Crosby and Kris Letang, longtime members of the team’s core.

“I spoke with those two on Day 1, right after getting the position,” he said. “You’re always working with the leaders. You’re always working with the players who have been in this league. … You’re going to be leaning on them to have those conversations, those daily discussions. The big-picture conversations and the smaller conversations, as well.”

Those aren’t the only players with whom he has spoken, however.

“I’ve reached out to, I would say, close to 95 percent of all players (in the organization) under contract,” Muse said. “Not just players who were here last year. We’re still finishing that part up.”

Before he got the job, Muse had a low profile and had been viewed outside the organization as a second-tier candidate, one who fell in the “also receiving consideration” category.

But while Dubas is extremely well-connected in the hockey universe, he said he made a point of not limiting his search for Sullivan’s replacement to people with whom he already had a relationship.

Had he done so, it is fairly evident that Muse would not have gotten serious consideration, let alone a job offer.

“I thought it would have been a disservice to the organization just to hire someone that I know very well or that I’ve worked with in the past,” Dubas said. “Especially given where we are and the unique nature of the job. … It was imperative that we were extraordinarily thorough to find the exact best fit for the Penguins.”