Speculation: Available Coaches
- Thread starter ottawa
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The team only has a chance to be competitive early if they pick up a bunch of defensive players and hire someone like Hitchcock.
That is not the direction I want the team to go, and I don't think McPhee will either with his history.
I would rather the team be poor for 2-3 years while stockpiling young talent. And for those people saying "but the Oilers" I think they are the outlier and not the mean.
Young core players is the way to sustained success instead of patching together a team of over the hill vets and going for it for a year or two and be left with nothing after.
That is not the direction I want the team to go, and I don't think McPhee will either with his history.
I would rather the team be poor for 2-3 years while stockpiling young talent. And for those people saying "but the Oilers" I think they are the outlier and not the mean.
Young core players is the way to sustained success instead of patching together a team of over the hill vets and going for it for a year or two and be left with nothing after.
Exactly. Think of the Florida Panthers, yes they made the Stanley Cup finals in their third season by getting frugal defensive players and playing strictly defensive hockey, but they went to the playoffs two more times in the next fourteen years!
Vegas needs to be patient and focus on drafting, developing and stockpiling good young players consistently.
I think that the average fan would understand this but will it work in the Vegas market? Will the Knights try to go against and beat the odds with a win-now approach to roster building and coach selection?
Would someone like Hitch even want to work with an expansion team through those first few difficult seasons?
Vegas will probably see a few seasons of quality attendance regardless of play, the first pro sports franchise in a large city's history will make people show up even if they aren't fans yet, just out of curiosity or excitement. They don't need to worry about what people think of the Vegas market, at least in the beginning.
When it comes down to it, it won't really matter what the Vegas market could handle in terms of losing in the beginning, if they build a sustained competitive team they'll be fine. Sustained success will put butts in seats in any market.
Patience will be key here, yes you can build the best team you can with a load of vets and try for the playoffs right away, but if they aren't successful they end up in the middle of the pack not quite making the playoffs and not getting the best draft choices. Worst case scenario here: Atlanta, Florida, Arizona.
If Mgmt. is smart they should be looking for sustained success over immediate results, even though they will probably be better off than most expansion teams of the past. If they implement a good system, they could make the playoffs after a few years and remain a playoff team for a while. Best case scenario: San Jose, Tampa, Nashville
I don't know much about McPhee - do people think that we would go the sustainable route and bypass win/now? I think the answer to that question would help with the coaching selections.
I think he's gone on record saying he wants to be a contender fast, and that he'll select the best players in the draft.
Ginormousthumbs
Registered User
With the way this league is, it's going to be at least 10 years before the VGKs sniff the finals.
jwhouk
Former Cheesehead, Always a Preds Fan
You know, if it wasn't that I wasn't a betting man (insert own snarky comment here), I'd ask if you'd wanna wager on that.
EVERY expansion team over the last 50 years in the NHL has made the playoffs within 10 years of joining the league.
EVERY expansion team over the last 50 years in the NHL has made the playoffs within 10 years of joining the league.
ckg927
Registered User
Well, Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun put forth a few other names in his column yesterday. He notes that the Knights are looking for "a good communicator" for their first HC. As for his candidates...
*Craig Berube: Currently HC of the AHL's Chicago Wolves. He coaches the Flyers for 2 seasons. One playoff appearance in that time frame.
*Kirk Muller: Currently an assistant coach with Montreal(his second stint). HC of Carolina for 3 seasons. Never made the playoffs.
(Both Berube & Muller have ties with GM George McPhee.)
Garrioch adds that if you want someone who has coached an expansion team, consider Rick Bowness. He was Ottawa's HC for their first three seasons, wants to return to coaching and was a finalist for Anaheim's HC post last season.
Thoughts?
*Craig Berube: Currently HC of the AHL's Chicago Wolves. He coaches the Flyers for 2 seasons. One playoff appearance in that time frame.
*Kirk Muller: Currently an assistant coach with Montreal(his second stint). HC of Carolina for 3 seasons. Never made the playoffs.
(Both Berube & Muller have ties with GM George McPhee.)
Garrioch adds that if you want someone who has coached an expansion team, consider Rick Bowness. He was Ottawa's HC for their first three seasons, wants to return to coaching and was a finalist for Anaheim's HC post last season.
Thoughts?
They're all strong candidates. As Garrioch indicated, of the three Bowness would have the experience of dealing with the whole expansion thing, especially if there are going to be a lot of moves those first few seasons. My hunch is that a big part of this job will be mastering chaos.
LadyStanley
Registered User
McPhee's first Caps head coach (97-02) was Ron Wilson.
One San Jose pundit was postulating that he might be a candidate for Vegas Head Coach.
Three reasons I DO NOT think he's even in the conversation:
First: I think he's happy being "retired". He has taken a few tournament coaching gigs, but don't know that he's interested in taking on the grind of a NHL head coaching job.
Second: He's been "out" of the NHL for 4+ years. Don't know that he's kept up with the league and how to win in the current NHL.
Third: He's recovering from a stroke. Until and if he gets a full, clean bill of health, he may have some mental issues (e.g., memory) and/or other physical issues that won't allow him to do a demanding job.
One San Jose pundit was postulating that he might be a candidate for Vegas Head Coach.
Three reasons I DO NOT think he's even in the conversation:
First: I think he's happy being "retired". He has taken a few tournament coaching gigs, but don't know that he's interested in taking on the grind of a NHL head coaching job.
Second: He's been "out" of the NHL for 4+ years. Don't know that he's kept up with the league and how to win in the current NHL.
Third: He's recovering from a stroke. Until and if he gets a full, clean bill of health, he may have some mental issues (e.g., memory) and/or other physical issues that won't allow him to do a demanding job.
jwhouk
Former Cheesehead, Always a Preds Fan
Muller would have a (very brief) tie with the Nashville/Milwaukee Admirals organization, as he was the Ads head coach for a grand total of a month and a half before being hired by the Hurricanes.
Hivemind
We're Touched
FWIW, Berube did interview for the Capitals HC vacancy in 2012. Berube thought the interview went well, so he was surprised when he found out he was not one of the final three candidates for the job. Adam Oates ultimately got the position, although there has been some rumor mongering that McPhee preferred Cooper and was overruled by ownership.
ottawa
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Wouldn't they have to give up a 2nd to the sens for him? Probs not the best course of action for a rebuilding team.
Super Cake
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- Jun 24, 2013
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ottawa
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I think they only got rid of the rule for staff that had been fired from a team. If someone was to hire someone in an active role on another team, I think they would have to compensate still.
Not 100% sure though.
WhatTheDuck
9 - 20 - 8
Travis Green seems like one of the better candidates vying for his first NHL head coaching job, but I'm not sure if that's the route that Vegas will want to go. It seems that he was in the running to replace Boudreau in Anaheim, and a lot of Ducks fans were in favor of the idea.
Green has one championship in the WHL under his belt, one loss in the finals and since then, not much... almost last in the league this year. Bet they are glad they went in another direction.
I think Todd Nelson would be a great consideration for this vacancy. A proven AHL coach that works well with young talent, best PP in the league and two All-star appearances in five years. Not to mention 2 Calder Cups as a player, 1 as an AHL assistant coach, hasn't missed playoffs in the AHL as a coach (according to HockeyDB), plus has NHL experience as a head (turning EDM around with half the lineup they currently have) and as an assistant coach in Atlanta. Far better resume in my opinion....guy deserves a chance.
Nalens Oga
Registered User
Please no Travis Green's. Gimme a mediocre coach with an NHL resume over an unproven AHL/CHL coach. Yes you can possibly end up with a Dave Hakstol or a Mike Sullivan but you're more likely to end up with a dud like Jared Bednar or Cody Eakins by going that route.
It's just risky and I don't think they should be making a high-risk/high-reward move. I'd even take a guy like Bob Hartley. Yeah he's not winning you the cup but the team isn't gonna be winning the cup in the first place early on. He's at least dependable as an NHL coach, if the roster is good then it will perform well enough under a guy like him. Of course I wait to see if another coach like Julien or Ken Hitchcock becomes a possibility but I definetely don't take a non-NHL coach. I'd even be willing to go to a Kevin Dineen or Gerard Gallant who didn't have long coaching stints but were decent enough.
This coach isn't a first choice type but a guy that can hopefully do the job for 1-2 seasons before the right guy becomes available unless that guy is there from the getgo.
It's just risky and I don't think they should be making a high-risk/high-reward move. I'd even take a guy like Bob Hartley. Yeah he's not winning you the cup but the team isn't gonna be winning the cup in the first place early on. He's at least dependable as an NHL coach, if the roster is good then it will perform well enough under a guy like him. Of course I wait to see if another coach like Julien or Ken Hitchcock becomes a possibility but I definetely don't take a non-NHL coach. I'd even be willing to go to a Kevin Dineen or Gerard Gallant who didn't have long coaching stints but were decent enough.
This coach isn't a first choice type but a guy that can hopefully do the job for 1-2 seasons before the right guy becomes available unless that guy is there from the getgo.
WhatTheDuck
9 - 20 - 8
Yeah as I alluded to in my original post, I can understand why an expansion club would want to go with an experienced coach over a more "green" choice, I do think he will make an excellent NHL coach one day though. If anything, bring in a veteran NHL coach to take the reigns for the first couple/few seasons and apprentice a young coach with potential as an associate. It's too bad Hitch is retiring, he'd be perfect for the role.
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