Mark Hardy talks about his desire to coach in Ontario

Following up on yesterday's articles...

Reign President Justin Kemp said that former LA King Mark Hardy is on the short list of final candidates for the open head coaching position in Ontario (ECHL).

Here are some initial comments from a subsequent conversation I had with Hardy following my meeting with Kemp yesterday...

"I'd be honored to work for the Kemp family again," began Hardy. "Hopefully, I can help the Ontario Reign bring the Kelly Cup to Southern California."

- On the fact he never formally interviewed with Kemp, only spoke with him by phone: "Hopefully we can sit down and talk about things further. I hope it was a step in the right direction, that's for sure. Just to be considered for it is quite an honor to me. I do have a relationship with them from working in Long Beach (Ice Dogs). And when I coached the Los Angeles Blades under Jeanie Buss (pro roller hockey), Justin worked for us at the time. So, we've had a long relationship. I'm confident that he knows my qualifications fit the bill and I'd be honored to have the opportunity to work for them again."

Reign President - 'Mark Hardy is on the short list of finalists'

Mark Hardy and Craig Johnson

Could former LA Kings Mark Hardy and Craig Johnson be on the verge of forming a coaching tandem in the ECHL?

According to Ontario Reign President Justin Kemp, Hardy is on the short list of finalists for the open head coaching slot - as he discusses in detail below.

Hardy, a former assistant coach with the Kings for more than 10 seasons, also is near the top in several statistical categories for LA defensemen - including third most games played (616), second most assists, third most points and fifth most penalty minutes. He was also part of the Kings run to the Stanley Cup Finals in 1993.

Johnson, most recently, has been coaching youth hockey in Orange County. He originally arrived in Los Angles as part of the epic 1996 trade that saw Wayne Gretzky dealt to St. Louis. After playing more than seven seasons for the Kings, he was a Mighty Duck for one year (2003-04). After a few more NHL stops, he wrapped up his on-ice career by playing a few seasons in Europe.

Hardy was one of the Kings assistant coaches during most of Johnson's time with the Kings.

Following up on today's earlier interview, here's Kemp with an A to Z look at the coaching situation in Ontario, including specific comments about how Hardy and Johnson might fit in...

Rob Blake joining the NHL Front Office?

Following up on our Season Preview article that posted earlier today, Pierre LeBrun (of ESPN) had some additional news to share...

It looks like former Kings defenseman, Rob Blake, may soon be joining the NHL's front office.

All indications were pointing to him possibly taking a job with the San Jose Sharks now that he's retired. However, LeBrun says hold everything. Another offer may be in the works.

This position could even lead to him revamping one of the NHL's marquee events.

Intrigued? I was...

MM: You recently broke news that Rob Blake might be joining the NHL front office. What's the story there?