The New Jersey Devils currently have two coaches on the payroll. One of the biggest changes Sunny Mehta made when he took the job as general manager was revamping the coaching staff. Some moves appeared to be in his hands, like keeping Sheldon Keefe and moving on from long-time goalie coach Dave Rogalski. Others, like the loss of Jeremy Colliton, came down to the coach making a business decision.
The most surprising move was when the Devils announced that Sergei Brylin was no longer going to be a full-time coach on Keefe’s staff and instead would take on “another role” with the organization.
This decision had fans split. While many were happy to see Sheldon Keefe get an opportunity to hire his own staff, Brylin has been a coach with this organization since Pete DeBoer was head coach. The Devils have had nine head coaches since Brylin was hired (if you count the Adam Oates, Scott Stevens, and Lou Lamoriello situation as three different coaches).
For the first time since the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season, the Devils won’t have Brylin as a coach anywhere in the organization. And now, we learned he won’t even be with the only NHL organization he called home; one that he has been a part of since 1994.
Sergei Brylin may be leaving the New Jersey Devils organization
Reports out of Russia say that Brylin is primed to take over the head coaching job at Dynamo Minsk. Hockey News Hub, which has been an authority on Russian hockey news, claims the two sides are close to an agreement.
REPORT
— Jeremy Garrett HNH (@HockeyNewsHub) July 13, 2026
Sergei Brylin and Dinamo Minsk have reached a preliminary agreement on signing a contract.
Brylin would become the head coach.
Nothing official yet. Keeping an eye on the situation. #KHL
As the tweet says, this is not official just yet, and until the ink is dry on the contract, anything can happen, but all signs point to Sergei Brylin leaving New Jersey for Russia.
Brylin has been tied to KHL coaching jobs in the past, but he always returned to the Devils. Whether he was truly going for the job or not is up for interpretation, but this seems to be the closest Brylin has been to leaving the Devils organization. He’s no longer a coach with the Devils, whether his interest in returning to Russia had anything to do with it or not.
Brylin is a legend in New Jersey. We learned about that when he got a rousing ovation when he entered the Devils Ring of Honor. He will be missed, but he will always be a Devil.
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