PITTSBURGH

Dave Cameron may not be out of the NHL next season.

While there are no guarantees, and it isn’t known where he stands, the former Ottawa Senators coach was given permission to speak with the Detroit Red Wings about an assistant’s job with Jeff Blashill and may have met with them not long after returning from the world championship.

Though the Wings hired former Boston Bruins assistant coach Doug Houda last month, the club still has another opening because it is doing an overhaul of nearly its whole staff.

Since being fired by the Senators in April, the 58-year-old Cameron knows it’s going to be difficult for him to get back behind a bench in a head coaching role. There is belief in league circles he’s open to the idea of going back to the American Hockey League or even junior.

Fired along with assistant Andre Tourigny and goalie coach Rick Wamsley last month, Cameron still has one year left on his contract with the Senators. A report last month said the Wings are also expected to speak with former Columbus head coach Todd Richards about the assistant’s role.

Richards worked with Team USA last month at the world championship while Cameron was on the Team Canada staff in Russia.

Meanwhile, Senators coach Guy Boucher is working on trying to round out his staff. It’s believed former Calgary Flames assistant Rob Cookson is the leading candidate to be the club’s ‘eye-in-the-sky’ in the press box next season and Ottawa has already added associate coach Marc Crawford to the staff.

Cookson worked with Crawford last year in Switzerland.

Boucher is also doing interviews for a goalie coach to replace Wamsley. TVA reported Wednesday night that former Montreal goalie coach Pierre Groulx, a former video coach in Ottawa, and former NHL goalie Fred Brathwaite, who worked with Ottawa last season, are the finalists.

There has been speculation former St. Louis Blues associate coach Brad Shaw would be a good addition to the Sens staff but Crawford will be in charge of changing the defence so there likely isn’t a fit.

The Senators also still need a coach for their AHL affiliate in Binghamton and word is that search is close to being completed.

bgarrioch@postmedia.com

Twitter: @sungarrioch