Oilers Would Have Gotten Their Guy “If They’d Just Waited a Week”

The Edmonton Oilers hired Mike Babcock as their newest head coach, but before deciding to interview him and then get the NHL’s approval to bring him back, they were all over Bruce Cassidy of the Vegas Golden Knights. Having sought permission to interview Cassidy, Vegas said no. Instead of waiting, the Oilers pivoted.

In a recent interview on the Bleed Oil Blue Podcast, veteran sports broadcaster Rod Pedersen says that if the Oilers had waited just one more week in June, they would have landed their first choice.

On the Bleed Oil Blue Podcast, veteran sports broadcaster Rod Pedersen says that if the Oilers had waited just one more week in June,@rodpedersen @RodPedersenShow
they could've landed Bruce Cassidy as their head coach. pic.twitter.com/vin4GhXLEu

— Bleed Oil Blue (@BleedOilBlue) July 30, 2026

I think Bruce Cassidy would have been a better fit, and had they waited a week, they would have had him,” said Pedersen. When the response was that’s big news, Pedersen clarified, “…that’s what I think and I’ve talked to the agents and they’re all like that’s exactly what happened.”

He added that Babcock has the credentials to be a good fit for Edmonton and said he’s not a bad guy, “but every time he comes on my show, my phone blows up with players that hate him.”

So, let’s be clear. Pedersen is giving his opinion here, not stating a fact. No one knows for sure that the Golden Knights would have released Cassidy to talk to the Oilers about a coaching position. The feeling is that they were never going to give him permission to talk to a division rival about coaching the team and would rather pay him to not coach than coach the Oilers. Edmonton seemed to understand that, which is why they gave up waiting and pivoted to Babcock.

The Oilers leadership group talked to Babcock about their situation and they were sold that he was the guy. They never got the same opportunity to talk with Cassidy, so we may never know if he was ever seriously in the running.

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