Peter DeBoer has helped two teams reach the Stanley Cup Final but said the Vegas Golden Knights are the best he's ever coached.
"It's the most talented team I've had in my coaching career," DeBoer said on The Chirp with Darren Millard podcast. "It seems like a great combination of talent and character and leadership."
The Golden Knights (39-24-8) were first in the Pacific Division when the NHL season was paused March 12 due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus and are one of four teams that would compete in a Seeding Round Robin to determine the top four teams in the Western Conference for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
DeBoer replaced Gerard Gallant as Golden Knights coach Jan. 15 after he was fired by the San Jose Sharks on Dec. 11. Vegas was 15-5-2 under DeBoer, who coached the New Jersey Devils to the Cup Final in 2012 and the San Jose Sharks in 2016, losing each time.
"I'm a big believer that everything that happens in hockey happens for a reason," DeBoer said. "One door closing, the way my career has gone, another door opens with a better opportunity. For me, as tough as it was to leave San Jose 33 games after going to the [Western Conference Final] the year before, the Vegas situation is an opportunity of a lifetime."
The Sharks, who lost to the St. Louis Blues in six games in the conference final last season, were 15-16-2 when DeBoer was fired. He was 198-129-34 with the Sharks after being hired May 28, 2015. San Jose lost the 2016 Stanley Cup Final to the Pittsburgh Penguins in six games.
The Golden Knights and Sharks played each other in the past two Stanley Cup Playoffs, with the Golden Knights defeating the Sharks in the second round in 2018, and San Jose eliminating Vegas in seven games in the first round in 2019.
"I got the Vegas job … and had to address a group of men who hated my guts for the last three years," DeBoer said.
Vegas was 4-3-2 in his first nine games under DeBoer before it won eight in a row from Feb. 13-28. The Golden Knights, St. Louis Blues, Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars were given a bye into the playoffs in the Return to Play Plan the NHL announed Tuesday.
"I think you coach in this league for opportunities like this, with teams like this," he said. "I'm really thankful for how everything played out this year as tough as some of the moments were."
DeBoer is 430-334-113 in 877 regular-season games as coach of the Florida Panthers, New Jersey Devils, Sharks and Golden Knights, He is 46-38 in the playoffs; the Devils lost the 2012 Stanley Cup Final to the Los Angeles Kings in six games.
Fans of @GoldenKnights and @NHLJets and those who have followed Pete DeBoer and Paul Maurice on their journeys, this is a fun listen. From their time as teammates in @SpitsHockey to what it would be like to square off in the @nhl playoffs. Some good laughs here. https://t.co/Qwz9shJBGs
