Consulted Ducks players 'unbelievably supportive' of Randy Carlyle hire

Randy Carlyle's former pupils may have been the deciding factor in his return to an NHL bench.

Anaheim Ducks general manager Bob Murray, in his reintroducing of Carlyle to the media Tuesday, revealed his tenured stars were in complete support, even pressuring him to facilitate the head coach's return.

Only a handful of players were around during the coach's initial tenure; Anaheim's seen substantial turnover since. Yet, the players who were around - Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry - have been unable to reproduce the same success in his absence. The trio won a Stanley Cup in 2007 when Getzlaf and Perry were second-year professionals.

As an aside, it doesn't appear former Ducks defenseman Ryan Whitney was consulted.