Speculation: Bednar's future

[James G]

Second or third youngest team in the league. Second or third lowest salary in the league. These things need to be considered when evaluating a coach. For all I know we’re going to be Jon Cooper and the Lighting in a few years. I’m sure that’s the plan anyway

 

[Cousin Eddie]

Miss playoffs, goodbye.
Make playoffs, see ya in September.

I think it’s that simple.

 

[AllAboutAvs]

Miss playoffs, goodbye.
Make playoffs, see ya in September.

I think it’s that simple.

I don't think it is.

 

[klozge]

Miss playoffs, goodbye.
Make playoffs, see ya in September.

I think it’s that simple.

It probably is. No matter if we like it or not.

 

[Vaslof]

We were so bad for such a long time that even if there's a second wind and we make the playoffs, I still hope we get rid of Bednar. The only exception I'd give is if there is no better candidate available.

 

[Bubba Thudd]

I don't trust our organizations ability to hire coaches, the alternative could be worse than Bednar.

That right there is what scares me about dumping Bednar.

 

[Spleenless Wonder21]

IMO you don’t let Bednar go unless you’ve got a bigger fish on the line (I.E. Quenneville). At the same time, Sakic’s responsibility is to make the team as competitive as possible, so he’d better be kicking the tires on interest level in the position among the likes of Quenneville, Sutter, Vignauglt, etc were the job available via back channel communication.

 

[TruePowerSlave]

The Avs do not have one of the best teams in the west, the team is very young and we don't spend even close to the cap. The roster has obvious holes that have never been fixed by Sakic. Despite all that the Avs could make the playoffs once again.

MacKinnon and Rantanen have evolved into star forwards. Many of the youngsters are progressing nicely and even Landeskog is playing the best hockey of his life. The message hasn't gotten stale and the team is fighting all the way to the end.

All signs point out that the Avs are ready to take off as long as management actually starts addressing the teams weaknesses.

 

[Foppa2118]

I think there's a few things Bednar has gotten wrong in terms of not adjusting his system, not identifying good chemistry in lines, sending down their only good 4th liners of the season in favor of poor ones, not finding the pulse of the depth players until a couple games ago, and a handful of other things as well.

That said, he did get this team to wakeup a couple games ago. He must have challenged them somehow and it worked. They've played amazing lately.

So I'd say let the season decide his fate. If they make the playoffs, then he stays. If they don't, he doesn't. Barring some sort of dominant sweep in the first round or something.

 

[Foppberg]

I think there's a few things Bednar has gotten wrong in terms of not adjusting his system, not identifying good chemistry in lines, sending down their only good 4th liners of the season in favor of poor ones, not finding the pulse of the depth players until a couple games ago, and a handful of other things as well.

That said, he did get this team to wakeup a couple games ago. He must have challenged them somehow and it worked. They've played amazing lately.

So I'd say let the season decide his fate. If they make the playoffs, then he stays. If they don't, he doesn't. Barring some sort of dominant sweep in the first round or something.

I'm not a huge Bednar fan, nor am I a hater. If there's a clear upgrade available, get him. If not, keep him.

Although the Avs have never been the type to spend big cash on a coach.

 

[Colorado Avalanche]

I'm not a huge Bednar fan, nor am I a hater. If there's a clear upgrade available, get him. If not, keep him.

Although the Avs have never been the type to spend big cash on a coach.

Q won't be cheap but we should get him.

 

[Pokecheque]

God I get so torn about this guy. He's so insightful and analytical at his pressers, he nails exactly what the team did right and what they did wrong, but there are so many issues I have with his tactics, personnel decisions, and in-game adjustments. I think he truly is a tremendous hockey mind, just don't think, at this point, that he can be The Guy going forward.

But I suppose...IF they somehow make the playoffs, it's a moot point. He should stay. If the team falls short, then there might be some question, though I imagine at this point he's coming back no matter what.

 

[klozge]

Somebody earned himself an extension, I guess. Even if they miss the playoffs it's difficult to ignore what the team has done in the most important part of the regular season. Landeskog injured, Rantanen injured, doubts about the goaltending (not anymore) and they've still clawed their way back.

 

[Pokecheque]

I don't think he should get an extension. And I don't think he will get one.

I still wouldn't mind them taking a good, long look at the coaching staff this offseason. There are still a lot of problems that need to be addressed, notably, the inconsistency on special teams and the excessive amount of dumb penalties. There are some very flawed systemic issues that, even now, are cause for concern. I'm not a huge fan of it when teams hire a sort of "backup coach" as an assistant but it may be warranted here.

 

[Avs]

If we can’t land Quenneville, realistically who are potential available coaches that would be an upgrade and a long term solution?

 

[Pokecheque]

If we can’t land Quenneville, realistically who are potential available coaches that would be an upgrade and a long term solution?

I know he is currently employed by "the enemy" and is prone to some ridiculous temperamental fits (not like the Avs have ever had a coach like THAT) but I think Bruce Boudreau is a brilliant head coach. I think he'd be an upgrade over Bednar, but I'm obviously a bit biased. And yes, I think, unlike Bednar, his future in Minnesota hinges on whether the Wild make the postseason or not.

I also think very highly of Lindy Ruff, and he's proven he can do run-and-gun just as well as he preaches defensive-minded grinding hockey. He deserves another shot.

DeBoer, despite the fact that he does some things I'm not terribly fond of, would also be an upgrade over Bednar IMO.

 

[Raucherhusten]

Congratulation Bedsy for making the Playoffs once again and for being the coach of the Colorado Avalanche for the 2019-2020 season as well. Well deserved. Even with all your flaws you're still the best coach we had since Q.
Not that this is a high bar but still ...

 

[Papa Francouz]

He got us into the playoffs 2 years in a row. That hasn’t happened to this franchise in 15 years. To those of you that still want him gone...you cray cray.

 

[AllAboutAvs]

Congrats on making the playoffs Bedsy!

I always liked him despite a few flaws. He deserves a chance to show what this team can be with a good 2nd line and Makar in the lineup. Contrary to what some people here think I am sure the team loves to play for him...yes even Mack.

 

[benzino]

I'm ok with him staying he deserves it just wish he gets better at adjusting during games or when system is not working. Although we do seem better at clawing back into games lately.

 

[Pierce Hawthorne]

Yeah, no doubt he's back next season IMO and its well deserved. We've essentially been a Top 5 team in the league for 66% of the season. And while we were also the 31st best team in the league for the other 33%... when you look at the goaltending we got during that stretch you really cant blame it on anything else.


That said he should not be getting an extension this summer. He has 1 year left on his deal, and IMO simply making playoffs next year should no longer be good enough. Next season the mindset needs to be not to just squeak in as a WC and likely lose first round. We need to grab a divisional spot and honestly should be able to get home ice, and then win a round or two. If we can do that then yeah Beds deserves to stay, but if not we need to at least keep our options open for finding someone else.


Making playoffs 2 years in a row is a big step forward for the team from fluke playoff run to regular playoff team, next year needs to be another step towards contender status.

 

[ASmileyFace]

Yeah, no doubt he's back next season IMO and its well deserved. We've essentially been a Top 5 team in the league for 66% of the season. And while we were also the 31st best team in the league for the other 33%... when you look at the goaltending we got during that stretch you really cant blame it on anything else.


That said he should not be getting an extension this summer. He has 1 year left on his deal, and IMO simply making playoffs next year should no longer be good enough. Next season the mindset needs to be not to just squeak in as a WC and likely lose first round. We need to grab a divisional spot and honestly should be able to get home ice, and then win a round or two. If we can do that then yeah Beds deserves to stay, but if not we need to at least keep our options open for finding someone else.


Making playoffs 2 years in a row is a big step forward for the team from fluke playoff run to regular playoff team, next year needs to be another step towards contender status.

I was curious about what our splits actually looked like this season.

First 27 games: 16-6-5 37 points .685 point %
Next 27 games: 6-16-5 17 points .315 point %
Last 27 games: 16-7-4 36 points .667 point %

So damn consistent .

.676 point % for 2/3rds of the season puts us second overall to TB's .778. And .315 would dead last overall by .080.

So the statistics back up your assessment of the season. And you could expand that further and say we would be a top 3 team in the league easily for 66% of the season.

 

[CoachBadkitten]

Worth noting, even during that terrible 27 game stretch our advanced stats were pretty good. It was literally just goaltending and bad luck causing a lot of those losses.

 

[Avs_19]

Yeah, no doubt he's back next season IMO and its well deserved. We've essentially been a Top 5 team in the league for 66% of the season. And while we were also the 31st best team in the league for the other 33%... when you look at the goaltending we got during that stretch you really cant blame it on anything else.


That said he should not be getting an extension this summer. He has 1 year left on his deal, and IMO simply making playoffs next year should no longer be good enough. Next season the mindset needs to be not to just squeak in as a WC and likely lose first round. We need to grab a divisional spot and honestly should be able to get home ice, and then win a round or two. If we can do that then yeah Beds deserves to stay, but if not we need to at least keep our options open for finding someone else.


Making playoffs 2 years in a row is a big step forward for the team from fluke playoff run to regular playoff team, next year needs to be another step towards contender status.

IMO, he should and he will. They didn't want him being a lame duck coach this season so they gave him the one year extension. Maybe they do the same again but I'd lean towards him getting more than just the one year.

 

[hooverdam]

I'm still not Bednar's biggest fan; he has quirks that are always going to bug me, though they are really typical coaching issues. And as I've said before, he does things that are problems even when we win.

That being said, I understand keeping him. And I'm really hopeful that, in the very near future, this team will be talented enough to consistently overcome any of Bednar's bad personnel habits or problematic moves.