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#Sens name Jack Capuano associate coach on DJ Smith's staff today. https://t.co/4Q62BWT8qD — Bruce Garrioch (@SunGarrioch) June 6, 2019

An interesting name has surfaced as a candidate for head coach D.J. Smith’s staff with the Ottawa Senators.

The talk in National Hockey League circles Wednesday night was that Jack Capuano, former head coach of the New York Islanders, had held talks with the Senators about the possibility of working with Smith.

Capuano, 52, a former defenceman who was drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1984 and spent most of his playing career in the minors, just wrapped up a two-year stint as associate coach of the Florida Panthers. He spent almost seven seasons as Islanders head coach before being let go midway through the 2016-17 campaign.

Hired May 23 by the Senators after serving as an assistant with the Toronto Maple Leafs for four seasons, Smith is heading into his first season, and Capuano would be a nice fit. He would be heavily recommended by former Florida coach Bob Boughner, who has worked with Capuano for the past two seasons.

Boughner and Smith have close ties from the seven seasons together with the Ontario Hockey League’s Windsor Spitfires, ending in 2011. Capuano was let go after the Panthers decided to bring in Joel Quenneville as head coach in April.

Capuano would bring a wealth of experience, and that’s the route many NHL teams have gone lately with assistant coaches. The New York Rangers installed Lindy Ruff to work with David Quinn, who was hired from Boston University, and Marc Crawford joined the Chicago Blackhawks to work with Jeremy Colliton.