Capitals 'Mutually Part Ways' With Head Coach Peter Laviolette After 3 Seasons

The Washington Capitals and head coach Peter Laviolette have mutually agreed to part ways after three seasons, senior vice president and general manager Brian MacLellan announced Friday.

"We are grateful for Peter's leadership and dedication to our organization for the last three seasons," MacLellan said. "Peter is a first-class individual who has represented our club with integrity and guided our team through many difficult circumstances in his tenure as our head coach. We wish him all the best moving forward."

Laviolette's contract with the Capitals expires on June 30. The franchise will now embark on a search for the 20th head coach in franchise history.

The Capitals hired Laviolette ahead of the 2020-21 campaign to replace Todd Reirden, who coached the franchise from 2018 to 2020 after Barry Trotz resigned following the team's 2018 Stanley Cup championship.

In his three seasons with Laviolette at the helm, the Capitals went 115-78-27 and made the playoffs twice, losing in the first round in back-to-back seasons before missing the postseason this year.

The Capitals finished the 2022-23 season sixth in the Metropolitan Division with a 35-37-10 record, missing the playoffs for the first time since the 2013-14 campaign. It was also the first time since 2006-07 that the team finished with a losing record.

Significant injuries to key players such as John Carlson, Nicklas Bäckström and Tom Wilson were partially to blame for Washington's disappointing season, and the lack of organizational depth to replace those players contributed to the team's downfall.

As long as Alexander Ovechkin is on the roster, the Capitals are not going to enter a rebuild or even consider doing so. That said, they'll need a head coach they feel can help get them back to the Stanley Cup Final in the near future.

As for Laviolette, he has extensive coaching experience, having coached the Nashville Predators, Carolina Hurricanes, Philadelphia Flyers and New York Islanders before joining the Capitals.

If he doesn't find a head coaching job immediately, he'll at least likely be among the candidates for any open positions this summer.