Detroit Red Wings add assistant Jay Varady to Derek Lalonde’s coaching staff

Detroit Free Press

Derek Lalonde has added assistant Jay Varady to the Detroit Red Wings‘ coaching staff.

Most recently head coach of the American Hockey League Tucson Roadrunners, Varady joins Lalonde, associate coach Bob Boughner and goaltending coach Alex Westlund as new faces for the 2022-23 season. Alex Tanguay was retained from former coach Jeff Blashill’s coaching staff.

Varady served as an assistant coach with the Arizona Coyotes organization in 2020-21, in between two stints (2018-20, last season) in charge of the Coyotes’ top farm team.

RELATED: How Steve Yzerman’s Red Wings measure up in Eastern Conference playoff race

Boughner and Westlund were hired July 8. At the time, Lalonde said the Wings might hire another assistant.

Lalonde has said Tanguay will mostly be in charge of the forwards and Boughner was brought in to help guide the defense. Lalonde has stressed he wants all assistants to take part in special teams,for example, rather than have one be in charge of the power play and the other, the penalty kill.

READ MORE: Derek Lalonde on Red Wings’ Filip Zadina: A reset is healthy for a guy like that

Varady compiled a 93-84-11-6 record with the Roadrunners, and led the team to its first-ever Pacific Division title in 2019-20. He also served as head coach of the Pacific Division at the 2020 AHL All-Star Classic. During his time as an assistant with the NHL club, the Coyotes went 24-26-6.

Varady, 44, was head coach of the Ontario Hockey League’s Kingston Frontenacs in 2017-18, guiding the team to a 36-23-6-3 record and a berth in the Eastern Conference finals for the first time in franchise history. He arrived in Kingston after four seasons as head coach and director of hockey operations for the United States Hockey League’s Sioux City Musketeers from 2013-17, where he posted a 136-88-10-6 record. Varady was named the USHL’s Coach of the Year in 2016-17 after the Musketeers clinched the Anderson Cup as regular-season champions with a 40-13-5-2 mark and reached the Clark Cup Final.

Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames. Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter. Her book, The Big 50: The Detroit Red Wings is available from AmazonBarnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail. 

Articles You May Like

Red Wings’ Coaching Comes Into Question During Playoff Push
SSOTD: Predators vs. Red Wings, 3/23/2024
Grading Steve Yzerman’s Free Agent Signings as Red Wings GM
NHL Rumors: Oilers, Maple Leafs, Canucks, Red Wings
Red Wings Have a Star in the Making With Lucas Raymond

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *