PITTSBURGH — It didn't need to be a household name. In fact, when it comes to the NHL and its weird addiction to retread coaches, it's often more exciting when it's not.

It just has to work.

The subject at hand, of course, is Dan Muse, the 42-year-old the Penguins hired to become their next head coach on Wednesday afternoon. I didn't predict it. You didn't expect it. Let's not lie to ourselves and pretend otherwise.

The rub involved NHL assistants Mitch Love or D.J. Smith. Perhaps former Oilers coach Jay Woodcroft. They were here for interviews, and their names were leaked to the usual national reporters.

Evidently Muse was here, as well, though he flew very much under the radar, a microcosm of this entire process.

It also doesn't matter.

What Muse does and knows jibes with what the Penguins need, creating what at least seems like a reasonable or logical fit. Muse will be extended some grace given the Penguins' ongoing "transition." He'll also be counted upon to do pretty much what he's done at every stop of his coaching career, at least as far as I can tell: develop players.

A short list of examples:

— An assistant with Yale when the Bulldogs won an NCAA championship in 2013

— USHL title (called the Clark Cup) with the Chicago Steel in 2017

— Gold medal with the United States' under-18 team at the world championships in 2023

On top of that, Muse has been an assistant with the Predators (2017-20) and Rangers (2023-25), contributing toward three divisional titles and a pair of Presidents' Trophies during that time.

His focus has been the special teams, specifically the penalty kill, and improving play away from the puck — and, of course, helping younger and older guys alike find some improvement to their game.

"From his success in developing college and junior players, to his impactful work with veteran players during his time in the NHL, Dan has shown a proven ability to connect with players at all stages of their careers and help them reach their full potential," Penguins president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas said in a statement.

Good.

Because the Penguins need all of that and more.

They need Muse to ensure Rutger McGroarty — a player he's coached plenty with the U.S. National Team Development Program — continues his ascent into a top-six forward with some scoring ability and grit, the same way the Penguins need to create a lane for playmaking Ville Koivunen to thrive.

Owen Pickering got a cup of coffee last season and should upgrade that order to a Venti in 2025-26. After nearly making the NHL club out of camp, fellow defenseman Harrison Brunicke should be on the roster ... and hopefully grow into a star.

Those are only the rudimentary challenges.

Look up and down the roster. There's plenty for Muse to chase.

Like figuring out the goaltending situation between Tristan Jarry (no), Alex Nedeljkovic (maybe), Joel Blomqvist (likely not) and Sergei Murashov (enticing) or, again, bringing along younger wings such as Tristan Broz, Sam Poulin or Avery Hayes.

(Vasily Ponomarev has his own weirdness happening at the moment.)

The task of completing development at an Oklahoma City Thunder-level success rate won't be easy, obviously. It's also only part of the job description for Muse, a native of Canton, Mass., who played Division III hockey at Stonehill College.

(As an aside, I've heard that when you need something important done, it's always wise to trust former Division III athletes.)

Aside from the young guys, Muse must find a way to get the same and probably more out of his aging core of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang and potentially Erik Karlsson. Unlike the last time the Penguins went with an off-the-board hire, he'll need to connect with those guys better than Mike Johnston ever did.

The Penguins need to reimagine their on-ice identity and play a more responsible style of hockey — call it an admission of flaws — or at least a system that doesn't always include defensemen jumping up into the play and layers of defense in front of the goaltender.

The more I learn about Muse, the more I like — his varied experience throughout the game, his vision on how to play it the right way, whatever he's done to connect with, mentor and bring along young guys.

For while Johnston's charge was to keep the window open, I think of what Muse must do a little differently. He might need to blow out a wall and install a bay window.

The good news is he's done it before, even if we may have missed it.

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