Bruins fire Bruce Cassidy: Front office issues might limit Boston’s appeal to established coaches | Matt Vautour

After firing coach Bruce Cassidy, the Bruins better have someone really good ready to replace him.

During his tenure in Boston, Cassidy’s teams were always competitive, always in the playoffs and at times legit Stanley Cup contenders. If Cam Neely and Don Sweeney don’t think that’s enough, the next guy has a tall order that won’t be easy to deliver on.

That might scare off some of the coaches the Bruins would or should be interested in. It’s a job in a hockey-loving Original Six city, but after that, the appeal starts to diminish.

For a veteran, established guy, this isn’t an overly attractive gig.

For starters, the way the Bruins treated Cassidy at the end isn’t likely to sit well with many coaches. Neely criticized Cassidy in his end-of-the-season press conference and then let him twist in the wind for three weeks before sending out a 7 p.m. press release Monday. For a guy who was successful on the ice and a good ambassador for the franchise and the sport off of it, Cassidy deserved better.

But more significantly, the next coach could have a difficult time succeeding.

The Bruins have an aging core with too many players being paid at rates higher than their production warrants, creating talent and salary cap issues. That’s been a hallmark of Sweeney’s tenure as he’s been forced to trade draft picks to unload his own bad free agent signings.

On top of that, the Bruins have drafted too many ineffective players, leaving Boston with few prospects ready to fill holes as veterans depart.

There’s a huge dearth of top-end talent at center, which would get even thinner if Patrice Bergeron retires.

David Pastrnak is a free agent. In many ways, a new coach is auditioning for whether the Bruins’ best goal-scorer wants to play for him long-term. That doesn’t set up a healthy power dynamic either.

The new coach is almost certain to get off to a difficult start, with so many key players — Brad Marchand, Charlie McAvoy, Matt Grzelcyk — expected to miss early time after offseason surgeries. Whether the Bruins hire a young coach or a veteran, that first month is so valuable for establishing belief and credibility among players. That’s going to be hard to do with this team.

The Bruins aren’t in a rebuild, but they also aren’t really contenders. They’re currently built for extended mediocrity.

What coach wants to lead a team with uncertain veterans, injured regulars, and few sure-to-be NHL players in the pipeline? Who wants to join a franchise that fired a guy who navigated many of those challenges effectively en route to the playoffs in each year of his tenure?

Cassidy might end up thanking the Bruins for letting him go. He’s likely to quickly be a candidate at one or more of the five other open positions, several of which are better set up for success than Boston is. The optics of him thriving elsewhere if the Bruins struggle would be really bad for Sweeney and Neely.

Obviously, somebody is going to take the Bruins job. There are only 32 NHL gigs and plenty of guys will want a shot, but it’s a risky spot.

Sweeney can’t afford to make a mistake either. If the next guy fails, he’s probably following him out the door.

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