Report: Penguins to interview Wilkes-Barre/Scranton coach John Hynes

When the Pittsburgh Penguins last fired their head coach, when Michel Therrien was given the pink slip in 2009, they turned to the little known but highly regarded head coach of their AHL affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, for a replacement. Dan Bylsma was promoted, and within a small handful of months the club was celebrating a Stanley Cup victory.

Now that Bylsma has been let go, might the Penguins draw from the same talent pool in their search for his replacement?

It seems possible, as current AHL bench boss John Hynes will get an interview for the general manager vacancy, Jim Rutherford confirmed to Rob Rossi of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review on Monday. Here's how Rossi highlighted Hynes' rather impressive credentials:

This past season, Hynes guided Wilkes-Barre/Scranton to a 42-26-8 mark in the AHL regular season despite playing without a handful of projected regulars because of the Penguins' NHL-worst 529-man-games lost.

As a coach, Hynes is reputable as a defensive-minded teacher that is unafraid to challenge players. Penguins' prospects to play under Hynes have described him as tough, but also honest and fair.

He also is known for his in-series adjustments, including spearheading playoff victories when Wilkes-Barre/Scranton trailed 2-0 and 3-0.

The 39-year-old has apprenticed under legendary University of Wisconsin coach Mike Eaves, as well as current Penguins assistant Todd Reirden. In four seasons as an AHL head coach Hynes has amassed an impressive .604 winning percentage in over 300 games with the Penguins, and was named AHL coach of the year in 2011.

As CBC's Elliotte Friedman explained in his weekly 30 Thoughts column this weekend, Hynes might warrant serious consideration from Penguins brass as a defensive move:

Hynes is going to be an interesting contender here. The front-office holdovers know him very well, and he's got a good reputation for in-game adjustments, something Rutherford specifically mentioned in his opening media conference. Five years ago, one of the reasons Pittsburgh promoted Bylsma was they knew they would lose him if they didn't use him. Hynes is getting to that point, too.