Taking a look at all the new faces behind NHL benches this season.
OK, already we here at sportsnet.ca have looked at the best (and the worst) teams for 2008-09. We've also looked at some of the best players, some of the best (and worst) run franchises, some of the best young players and even the oldest and still the season -- at least the North American season -- hasn't started yet (thank you very much Commissioner Bettman).
So as the clock ticks down to what amounts to Opening Night, Take Two the North America Chronicles, your not-so-humble correspondent attempts to rate the one stone we left unturned: How will the new guys fare?
As even the good hockey fans in Prague and Sweden know, there are lots of new (or recycled) coaches in the game this season. What follows is a happy handicapper's view of who they are and how they might fare in a league that often eats its young and old with equal vigor.
The list is in alphabetical order by team simply because the hockey moms told us to do it this way and it will cause Leafs coach Ron Wilson to use it as a motivational tool.
Atlanta Thrashers:
John Anderson (replaces fired Bob Hartley and interim Don Waddell who retreats to GM's office ):
Anderson cut his NHL teeth playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs (1977-1985). He also played with the now-defunct Quebec Nordiques and Hartford Whalers and finished his playing career in the AHL, IHL and, finally, for pizza in Italy. As a coach he had success with the Chicago Wolves of the AHL, leading that franchise to four titles in eight seasons. Unlike some of the men on this list, that's a successful, albeit limited, resume.
Our View: Four AHL titles have caused Anderson to be anointed as the second-coming of Bruce Boudreau. One could argue the Thrashers aren't that many players away from putting themselves together like the Washington Capitals did last season, but none of those players are on defence and its goaltending is playing to survive, not for free-agent riches. Expect his team to be competitive, but the playoffs are a long shot at best.
Colorado Avalanche
Tony Granato (replaces the half-fired, half-walked Joel Quennville):
Granato played for three NHL teams (New York Rangers, Los Angeles Kings and San Jose Sharks). This is the second go-round for Granato and the Avs. He had the helm in 2002-2004, and was just OK with a much better team than he has now. His reputation is that of a tough guy who drives players hard, an odd choice for a team entering a rebuilding phase but they hold to a high standard in Denver because of past successes and because Joe Sakic is still there and he's their ray of hope.
Our View: Granato should last the season even if the Avs don't make the post-season and there's a better than 50-50 chance that they won't.
Florida Panthers
Peter DeBoer (replaces interim coach Jacques Martin who was kicked back to his GM office):
DeBoer is another one who has never coached at this level but has an outstanding track record in the junior ranks for both tactics and player development. He was OHL Coach of the Year twice with Plymouth and led Kitchner to the Memorial Cup.
Our View: DeBoer is smart and emotional, relates well to young people and has a history of success with them. That's a nice fit for a team loaded with young, but under-achieving talent. He has the added advantage of having quality goaltending which is always a plus. The Panthers may not make the playoffs this season, but it won't be for a lack of good, organized coaching even if it is a bit inexperienced for this level.
Los Angeles Kings
Terry Murray (replaces a string of fired coaches including most recently Andy Murray, John Torchetti and Marc Crawford, none of whom have had playoff success in LA):
Murray bucks the league trend regarding new faces in that he not only has an NHL record, it's a winning one (360-288-83-6) in 737 games behind the bench. That includes the Florida bench where his brother Bryan fired him when he was GM there. Bryan is now GM of the Ottawa Senators and in his own battle for survival. Murray has always been a good coach but he's been in the administrative roles for awhile and dealing with kids may not be his forte.
Our View: Not going to say this guy is old, but he was drafted as a defenceman by the California Golden Seals (1970). One wants to believe there's still room in the game for hockey lifers and while the Kings aren't ready for playoff competition, they are ready for a career coach who knows teaching as well as tactics. Playoffs aren't in his immediate future, but should have a shelf life as long as GM Dean Lombardi is safe.
New York Islanders
Scott Gordon (replaces fired coach Ted Nolan):
Gordon was a college goalie who played three years at Boston College before traipsing through the AHL, IHL and ECHL. He did play 23 NHL games for the Quebec Nordiques when they were in the NHL. He coached in all of the minor leagues he played in and never won anything of consequence as a coach in the AHL, but did garner a few division titles for the Providence Bruins, the incubator for Boston.
Our View: He's being touted as an up-and-comer because of those division finishes, but seems to have gotten the job largely because he isn't Ted Nolan and because his boss, Garth Snow, didn't want Ted Nolan. It doesn't hurt that Gordon, like Snow, played the position, as goalies love other goalies almost as much as they love themselves. That said, Gordon deserves his shot, but getting a shot with the Islanders is akin to getting a shot from a firing squad.
Ottawa Senators
Craig Hartsburg (replaces the fired John Paddock and the interim Bryan Murray who remains as GM):
Hartsburg was a legitimate NHLer with 10 years of service to the Minnesota North Stars prefaced by a tour of virtually every club in the old WHA. He had success as an individual playing in two Canada Cup events (1981 and 1987), the 1987 World Championships where he was named Top Defenceman and three All-Star Game appearances (1980, 1982, 1983). He went from playing to an assistant coaching role with the Stars and had head coaching stints in junior hockey and in the NHL with Chicago and Anaheim. Both NHL jobs ended badly and he reinvented himself as a successful junior coach and with the Canadian junior team program.
Our View: Hartsburg "gets it" and he also gets what's perceived to be a high-end team, albeit one with a goaltending question and some holes on the backend. He's got a three-year deal which should make him bullet proof for the first year. Hartsburg has never won at this level, but he's never stopped improving himself either and this looks like a good fit with a chance for real success providing he finds ways to make talented players play harder. No easy chore for a coach with a reputation for having a heavy hand and players who have a reputation as coach killers. Throw in a GM on the hot seat and an owner with a short view and it makes for an interesting mix.
San Jose Sharks
Todd McLellan (replaces the fired Ron Wilson):
Todd who? Ok, cut it out, the guy has a credible reputation as a coach in training and was a major contributor to the coaching team that guided Detroit to the Stanley Cup last spring. That and the fact that running the power play was his forte there certainly didn't hurt his chances for moving up, but he is largely an unknown to his new team which has a reputation as a good-to-great regular season club that can't find its way in the playoffs.
Before Detroit he cut his coaching teeth with Swift Current in the WHL and some time with Cleveland and Houston in the defunct IHL and had some success there.
Our View: Not sure what to expect from this guy. McLellan was a journeyman AHL player, but seemed to have earned respect while in Detroit. That said, the Sharks players are likely looking for a savior in the Scott Bowman class, not the "who "dat?" group. A definite question mark, but likely to easily make the playoffs and that buys time until the pressure really kicks in.
Tampa Bay Lightning
Barry Melrose (replaces the fired John Tortorella who deserved a better fate but got new owners instead):
Everybody knows Melrose as the former hockey analyst the way everyone used to know Joe DiMaggio as Mr. Coffee. But in case you're still in your self-indulgent years, we will tell you that Melrose used to coach in the NHL, not the way Joe D played baseball for the New York Yankees, but he at least had a history in the game some 13-14 years ago. The new owners in Tampa brought him in as a gate attraction and to coach one of the best players in the NHL, Vinnie Lecavalier and the No. 1 prospect in the game this season, Steven Stamkos. An interesting choice but then these are interesting times in Tampa.
Our View: Not overly optimistic considering Melrose was a player of no reputation and was regarded as about the same as a coach until he inherited Wayne Gretzky and the Los Angeles Kings. Still, he developed a reputation as someone who can build some team unity and inspire some to play beyond their abilities. That may not be enough in what is now an overly technical game, but Melrose served his time after an ugly, self-induced departure from the Kings and now he gets his long-awaited second chance.
Toronto Maple Leafs
Ron Wilson (replaces the fired Paul Maurice and inherits a franchise that has failed more times than a U.S. bank):
Wilson holds dual citizenship in the U.S. and Canada. He started his career as a defenceman at Providence College in the United States and had real success there. He also played, briefly, for the Leafs and in Europe. He comes from a hockey family and had a decent though middling career as a player. He started his NHL coaching career as an assistant with the Vancouver Canucks and was a head coach in Anaheim as well as Washington and San Jose. He has a reputation as a taskmaster and did get a nondescript collection of Capitals to the Stanley Cup finals in 1998 before they were obliterated in four by the Detroit Red Wings. He's a career coach who is known to be big on preparation and motivation though the motivation part has been characterized as mostly negative during his three-year run with the San Jose Sharks.
Our View: There are people who wonder if this is the right guy for the Leafs at this time. We are not in that camp. The Leafs aren't a team as much as they are the leftovers of a legacy of mistakes at a lot of levels and Wilson is at his best at cleaning up messes, changing the culture of teams and instilling a work ethic, cohesion and a sense of dedication, all of which has been missing from the franchise for far too long. Wilson likely won't be around should the Leafs ever make the promised land of Stanley Cup contender, but he will build a foundation.
