Native son Ken Hitchcock was named head coach of the Edmonton Oilers, replacing Todd McLellan, who was fired Tuesday.
FILE PHOTO: St. Louis Blues’ Ken Hitchcock poses with the Jack Adams Award for coach of the year backstage during the 2012 NHL Awards show at the Wynn Las Vegas Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada June 20, 2012. REUTERS/Steve Marcus
Hitchcock is third all time in the NHL in wins and has eight division titles on his resume, including the 1999 Stanley Cup with Dallas. The 66-year-old coached in Dallas in 2017-18 but announced his retirement in April. He has been on the bench for the Stars, Philadelphia Flyers, Columbus Blue Jackets and St. Louis Blues.
McLellan was 123-119-24 as Edmonton’s head coach. The Oilers have lost six of their past seven games and are 9-10-1 (19 points).
—Boston Bruins forward Patrice Bergeron is expected to miss several weeks with an upper-body injury, per multiple reports.
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TSN reported Bergeron had a shoulder injury, but other reports indicated Bergeron injured his ribs.
Bergeron, 33, was hurt Friday night in Dallas when he went shoulder-first into the boards. His 26 points through 19 games lead the team.
—Washington Capitals defenseman Brooks Orpik underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee and will miss four to six weeks, the team announced.
Orpik, 38, has missed the past nine games. He last played on Oct. 27 and was placed on injured reserve on Nov. 9.
Orpik has one goal and one assist in 10 games this season.
—Dan Maloney, a physical player known for fighting who later coached two NHL teams, died early Monday at age 68.
The NHL Alumni Association announced Maloney’s death on Tuesday. No cause of death or other details were divulged.
Maloney had 192 goals and 259 assists in 737 career games from 1970-82 with the Chicago Blackhawks, Los Angeles Kings, Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs. After his playing career ended, Maloney spent two seasons (1984-86) as coach of the Maple Leafs and two-plus seasons with the Winnipeg Jets (1986-89).
—Field Level Media