Kings assistant John Stevens to interview with New York Rangers

Interest in Kings assistant coach John Stevens appears to be heating up around the league with the New York Rangers now entering the picture.

Kings General Manager Dean Lombardi said, via email Thursday night, that Stevens is expected to interview with the Rangers for their vacant head coaching position. The Rangers fired John Tortorella four days after they were eliminated in the playoffs.

Team President Glen Sather previously told reporters he would like to have a head coach hired by the NHL’s entry draft, which is June 30.

Earlier this week, the Kings gave permission to the Vancouver Canucks to talk to Stevens about their vacant coaching position. That vacancy was created when the Canucks fired Alain Vigneault after a seven-year run. Vigneault, in fact, met with the Rangers on Tuesday, according to the New York Post.

The highly regarded Stevens coached the Philadelphia Flyers for parts of four seasons, for a total of 263 games.

He has been with the Kings the last three seasons as an assistant, handling the defense and working effectively with two head coaches, first on Terry Murray’s staff and then with Darryl Sutter, who took over in December of the 2011-12 season.

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