According to Darren Dreger the New York Rangers have been granted permission to speak with Dallas Eakins and Alain Vigneault for the open coaching vacancy.

According to Dreger, Eakins is also in contention for the Vancouver opening.

It's not surprising that the Rangers have targeted Vigneault in their coaching search. He's a guy who has significant playoff coaching experience in the NHL, and it seems like his style might be a preferred fit to that of Tortorella's. It's also been rumored that Sather and Vigneault have a good relationship from the past, and Sather is known for liking to work with those he's comfortable with.

Eakins is a bit of a surprise, but presents an interesting option. He's currently the head coach of the Toronto Marlies (the Toronto Maple Leafs' AHL coach) and seems to be a bit of a hot commodity on the coaching market. Eakins is also being looked at for the Associate Coach position with the Edmonton Oilers.

The Marlies finished second in the Western Conference this year with a 43-23-10 record, winning their division with 96 points. They were one point behind the Texas Stars for the top team in the West.

More information to follow when we know it. For now, thoughts, guys?