Oilers Next Head Coach Odds, Candidates & Predictions After Knoblauch Firing

• The Oilers fired head coach Kris Knoblauch on Thursday after back-to-back Stanley Cup Final losses
• Edmonton is now the second team searching for a new bench boss this week, joining the Maple Leafs
• See my next Oilers coach odds, candidate breakdown and predictions below

The Oilers fired Kris Knoblauch on Thursday, one day after the Maple Leafs cleaned house with Craig Berube. Knoblauch went 135-77-21 across 233 games and took Edmonton to back-to-back Stanley Cup Finals, but a first-round exit to Anaheim was enough for GM Stan Bowman to make the call.

The Edmonton Oilers head coach search is going to move fast. Connor McDavid has two years left on his deal, and bet365 has already posted odds on the new Oilers coach with Bruce Cassidy as a heavy favorite.

Here are my next Oilers coach odds, candidate breakdown and predictions.

Next Oilers Coach Odds

Cassidy at +120 is a much shorter price than the Maple Leafs job, where he’s listed at +185 alongside Manny Malhotra. The market is pricing this as Cassidy’s job to lose, with Bruce Boudreau a distant second at +350.

Then there’s the novelty section. Jari Kurri, Mark Messier and Paul Coffey are all at +7500, with Wayne Gretzky at +10000. Gretzky’s last bench job ended in 2009 with Phoenix. Fun lines, but the Oilers aren’t hiring a Hall of Famer to coach McDavid.

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Odds via bet365 as of May 15, 2026. Sign up with the Bet365 bonus code to place a wager on the next Oilers coach odds.

Next Oilers Coach Candidates

Bruce Cassidy is the name Edmonton wants. The Oilers reportedly tried to talk to him while Knoblauch was still employed, which lit the fuse for the firing. Vegas has denied permission to interview him so far, partly because they want whoever signs him to absorb the full $4.5M remaining on his contract. Elliotte Friedman expects that to sort itself out.

Peter Laviolette at +450 is the cleanest fallback among Edmonton Oilers head coach candidates. He’s seventh all-time with 846 NHL wins, has taken three franchises to a Cup Final, and won it all with Carolina in 2006. His Rangers tenure ended badly, but Mike Sullivan’s Rangers team was worse this year. That makes Laviolette’s exit look more like a roster problem than a coaching one.

David Carle at +650 is the wildcard. Three NCAA titles in five years at Denver and back-to-back World Junior golds with Team USA, but he’s also passed on multiple NHL jobs and signed a multiyear extension with Denver last summer. A jump now would be a surprise.

One name worth noting at +3000: Jay Woodcroft. He coached the Oilers from 2022 to 2023, going 79-41-13 with a Western Conference Final run before being fired. He’s currently an assistant in Anaheim and is in the mix for the Toronto job. A return to Edmonton would be a juicy story, but probably not the right move with this group.

Next Oilers Coach Predictions

• Peter Laviolette (+450 at bet365)

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My next Oilers coach prediction is Peter Laviolette at +450. Cassidy is the obvious favorite, but +120 carries too much risk for a deal that hasn’t been signed and is still tied up in a contract standoff with Vegas. Laviolette is the play if Cassidy slips.

The Kings are also pursuing Cassidy, and he’s listed at +185 to land the Maple Leafs job alongside Malhotra. Edmonton is competing for a coach Vegas won’t even let them talk to. Between Vegas blocking, the Kings circling, and the contract money in limbo, there are plenty of ways this could go sideways and force a pivot.

Oilers insider Bob Stauffer said Edmonton wants “an experienced head coach with gravitas who has had a history of having structure and process in his team’s game — and has won before.” Laviolette checks every one of those boxes, and at +450, you’re getting a 4-to-1 return on a coach who’d be the immediate frontrunner if the Cassidy deal collapses.

I’m on Laviolette at +450 for my next Oilers coach prediction at Bet365. While you’re here, check out the latest NHL playoff bracket for everything happening with the teams still alive.