These NHL Coaches Deserved Better
It’s that time of year. Teams are making adjustments and trying to put themselves in position to make the playoffs. All too common in pro sports is the idea that when a team is under-performing, it’s the coach’s fault. As a result, good coaches have been let go from their positions despite the fact that the teams that dismissed them are still just flat out bad.
This year has been unique. Three coaches who are genuinely great have been fired. Some of them are downright legendary. None of them deserved their fate.
Claude Julien
Just this week, the Boston Bruins announced the relieving of Claude Julien from his head coaching duties. Julien has been the coach of the Bruins for 10 seasons and has guided them to some of their best years. Most notably, he coached the team to their 2010–11 Stanley Cup victory and a second appearance in the Cup Finals in 2013. He won 419 games as head coach of the Bruins and posted an impressive .614 points percentage over those ten seasons.
So why fire the only Bruins coach to win cup since 1972? Through 55 games this year, Boston sits outside the Wild Card position in the Eastern Conference and is in danger of missing the playoffs for the third straight season. While the coach always feels like the easy target, perhaps the real culprit for this downturn is GM Don Sweeney, who has watched the team disintegrate since taking over in 2015. Not only is he responsible for trading young talents Dougie Hamilton and Riley Smith for very little but Loui Eriksson left for almost nothing in the free agency. He’s also signed older players like David Backes and archaic bruisers like Adam McQuaid and Kevan Miller to expensive, long-term deals. The Bruins are getting older and paying more money for it. Julien was able to guide the sinking ship to over 90 points each of the last two seasons in spite of this, narrowly missing the playoffs each time. Surely he can’t take all the blame for the state of the Bruins right now.
Ken Hitchcock
It’s rare that a coach so accomplished as Ken Hitchcock would be placed on such a short leash. He currently sits fourth all-time in wins for an NHL coach at 781. Since taking over the job as coach of the St. Louis Blues in 2011, the team has never finished worse than second in their division. They’ve struggled to find playoff success, but have always enjoyed home ice advantage under Hitchcock. He won the Jack Adams Trophy in 2012 and is easily a Hall of Fame coach. His St. Louis team sat in the last Wild Card spot in the Western Conference on February 1 when he was relieved of his coaching responsibilities.
This move is a bit jarring. Hitchcock had already announced this would be his final year behind the bench. The team was in playoff position upon his dismissal and has stayed close to the top three in a competitive Central Division. Goaltending has been inconsistent, injuries have hit the team, and trade rumors have circulated about many of their top players. The goaltending has improved over their last few games as former goalie coach Jim Corsi was also let go and Martin Brodeur and Ty Conklin have taken over that position. Perhaps that was the only change they needed. With so much hockey left to go and a coach who has more than proven himself — adding to the fact that this was already going to be his final season — it seems completely unfair for Hitchcock to be let go the way he was.
Gerard Gallant
The rash of coach firings began all the way back on November 28th when the Florida Panthers announced they had fired Gerard Gallant. The Panthers were over NHL .500 at 11–10–1 at the time and Gallant was coming off a year in which he was nominated for the Jack Adams Trophy. He was deserving of that honor as he had led the Panthers to the playoffs in 2015–16 and setting franchise records in wins and points. While the start wasn’t the one the Panthers had hoped for, they weren’t out of it by any means, and Gallant certainly didn’t seem to be the man responsible. In fact, it was lauded by some as “the worst firing in NHL history”. Making matters worse was the sight of Gallant putting himself in a cab after the loss at Carolina that sealed his fate.
The Panthers made a mess of a situation without any real need. Gallant had proven that he was capable of leading this core of young players and had Florida in a stable position through a quarter of the season.
The dismissal hasn’t made the team better. The Panthers currently stand at 56 points on February 8, just three points out of a playoff berth. But this is a team that won their division last season and has higher expectations. While injuries to Barkov and Huberdeau make matters worse, there can be little doubt that Gallant could have, and would have, put the team back in the post-season again this year.
What will all this mean?
For starters, every coach’s seat should feel a little warmer. If proven coaches like the ones mentioned above are being fired, there aren’t many who would be exempt. There seems to be very little room for error, especially as every team adopts a “win now” mentality.
It also hold implications for next season as the NHL adds another team. With the Las Vegas Golden Knights preparing to steal players and prospects away from the 30 established teams across the league, they have a nice selection of quality coaches at their disposal as well. The Knights will have more credibility next year if a coach like Gallant, Julien, or even Hitchcock presides behind the bench.
