NHL insider names coach under the most pressure entering 2026-27

Mike Babcock’s every interaction will be watched like a hawk by the NHL Players’ Association. John Hynes is tasked with getting the Minnesota Wild over the hump. And Jared Bednar’s job status in Colorado was publicly questioned following an embarrassing Conference Final sweep.

There’s always pressure knowing the coaching carousel will inevitably spin – but Utah Mammoth coach Andre Tourigny might quietly be facing the most pressure heading into the 2026-27 season. There is an undercurrent in Utah, where Tourigny signed in June what the Mammoth said was a "new multi-year extension."

Pressure is off, right? Things might not be exactly what they seem.

We know Tourigny, the fourth-longest tenured coach in the league, was set to enter the final year of his contract. No coach or team likes the spectre of a lame duck coach. Sources in the coaching fraternity have speculated that Tourigny and the Mammoth actually agreed instead to a one-year extension, plus re-worked the final year of his current deal, and announced it publicly as a "multi-year" deal.

That may be technically correct, but if Tourigny is only under contract through 2027-28, it leaves open the door that the Mammoth may not be convinced yet the coach hired for the rebuild is the same coach who can guide them to the contender. The Mammoth did not say when Tourigny’s deal concludes and teams are generally reticent to reveal contract details.

Let’s face it: Utah getting a taste of Stanley Cup playoff action masked the fact that the Mammoth underachieved last season. They finished just three points better than they did in their inaugural Utah season and fell short of their preseason over/under point total. Despite finishing in the Top 10 in both goals for and goals against, Utah’s playoff fate wasn’t decided until the final week of the season amid the Pacific Division pillow fight.

Why? As one rival coach put it: "We found Utah to be one of the most inconsistent teams in the league. We never knew who was going to show up. Some games they were flying. There were whole games where they didn’t show up, losing battles, second to every puck, and looked passive."

Tourigny did not seem to be on the same page with the deployment of J.J. Peterka, who was shipped off to Boston for two first-round picks. Sources say Tourigny is really well liked by his players, many of whom have run the gamut with him from Arizona, but this isn’t a popularity contest. The goal in Utah isn’t to be a playoff team; we know Utah owner Ryan Smith and GM Bill Armstrong are champing at the bit to enter that Stanley Cup contending conversation.

To that end, the Mammoth sold veterans Vincent Trocheck and Anders Lee on the opportunity in Salt Lake City. They also added Adam Foote to Tourigny’s bench as an assistant coach, months after being fired by the Vancouver Canucks as head coach. A front office ready to demonstrate progress, plus a short contract extension and a ready-made successor on the bench adds up to Tourigny being a name to watch on the odds board for first coaching change this season.