Dallas Eakins Appreciation Thread

[OneMoreAstronaut]

I don't know why any coach would take a job under this management team.

IMO that's why MacT is behind the bench. He knew he couldn't keep going with Eakins, but literally no one else outside of the farm team would accept the position. Why would a veteran coach throw away the rest of their career so that they can be the next failure to get anything out of the Oilers?

I hated his system but to think that he should be teaching fundamentals to NHL players is just absurd. This team is such garbage. Good luck resurrecting your career, Dallas.

 

[SometimesY]

Really wish the guy well. He and MacT have a lot in common in the way they view the game. He got the job.. did what was asked of him by his boss, it didn't work, he was let go. Maybe he does get another coaching opportunity and if so, I hope it works out for him.

 

[LTIR]

................ umm yeaa

 

[Crabapple]

I do hope he does better elsewhere. He was put in a situation to fail here, and although he certainly didn't help us, I think with a more experienced group he might be able to be a decent coach in the future. Good luck Dallas, hopefully you didn't ruin your career by coming here. Enjoy the free money

 

[CantHaveTkachev]

You've got to be kidding. He was terrible, did a very poor job even considering what he had to work with and cost the team years of futility.

Gracious and classy in exit? He should have tried more of that instead of pretentious and arrogant.

what did he have to work with?

 

[Lock]

what did he have to work with?

3 first overall draft picks.

You know who else has 3 #1 picks on their roster at the same time? No one.

 

[LTIR]

what did he have to work with?

A lot more skill than Flames GM...
A goalie who was top of the league when he was in LA...

not ideal but he was given some decent peices

 

[OilerTyler]

what did he have to work with?

Two NHL centres, three NHL defencemen and two backup goaltenders.

 

[McDynasty]

He was gracious in his last presser, thanking fans, management, etc.. I genuinely felt bad for him and I only wish him the best.

 

[LTIR]

Two NHL centres, three NHL defencemen and two backup goaltenders.

the non NHL Dmen were as good if not better than the 3 Nhl dmen..

 

[Up the Irons]

He is what he is. Its not his fault he was giving a job he wasn't ready for.

Never should have been hired in the first place.

The instincts of Oilers brain trust is completely whacked. And we're supposed to trust these guys get it right this time?

 

[RipsADrive]

I seem to be one of the few who liked listening to Eakins.

I don't know if the blame for this year lies mainly at his feet or at those of the team itself but I can genuinely say that I wish the best for Eakins in the future.

 

[LTIR]

Eakins thinks we overacheived last yr :S ... making the performance this year look worse

 

[bombers15]

Eliminate all gluten. That was about the extent of Eakins' coaching strategy.

Very well-spoken guy (it's how he got the job). But he didn't get enough out of what he did.

 

[CantHaveTkachev]

3 first overall draft picks.

You know who else has 3 #1 picks on their roster at the same time? No one.

so did Renny and Krueger....and the results were the same...sense a theme here?

A lot more skill than Flames GM...
A goalie who was top of the league when he was in LA...

not ideal but he was given some decent peices

Giordano-Brodie>>>>any d-man on the Oilers roster
real #1 goalie>>>>couple of back-ups

Eakins had to go...should've never been hired in the first place...but let's not act like he had good pieces to work with...

2 legit NHL centers, a soft D-core and two back-up goalies isn't gonna win you games

 

[camboy]

He was gracious in his last presser, thanking fans, management, etc.. I genuinely felt bad for him and I only wish him the best.

I give him 2 points for the presser today....that brings his total to 2 out of 100.

However, I do hope he gets another opportunity elsewhere down the line.

 

[McJeety McJeet]

Hated the coach, don't mind the man. Hopefully he learns from this experience and comes back better for it.

 

[McShogun99]

I wish him a head coaching job as soon as possible with another team in the Pacific division.

 

[azashi]

Eakins made mistakes early on and recognized them. He pushed an advanced system on players who didn't have all the fundamentals down. He came in arrogant and full of big expectations for a team that prospered under the supportive and positive Krueger for a reason. He punished Yakupov for the same mistakes that Eberle and Hall made. He pushed Schultz and punished Marincin.

He copped to most, if not all, of that.

Other than the Schultz/Marincin thing, all those problems were addressed this season. And for all we know, Marincin does have a ****** attitude or constantly needs a kick in the ass to progress on the ice.

Finally, Eakins had a great farewell press conference. Because no matter what, this team is still flawed and needs work. Needs years of work. The Penguins won the Cup after drafting Crosby, but they'd already drafted the likes of Orpik, Armstrong, Whitney (when he was healthy), and Malkin before. The Blackhawks won the Cup after drafting Toews and Kane, but they'd already had Seabrook and Big Fugly (2003), Bickell (2004), Hjalmarsson (2005). And FYI, their drafting since Toews/Kane has been AWFUL. Only Saad has panned out since '08.

 

[Chain Attack]

The story he told about having to explain to his 6 year old daughter that it was somebody else's turn (to coach the Oilers) put a smile on my face. He's a good guy, wish him all the best in his future endeavors.

 

[KeithIsActuallyBad]

It's pretty damning that he said he should've preached fundamentals.

What does that say about our players? They don't even have the basics down.

Sorry it didn't work here, Dallas. You weren't the greatest coach but you were expected to spin **** into gold.

 

[Meanashell11]

Nice guy, can't argue with that.

Bad coach. He came in with a system and be damned whether the players he had fit that system. Square peg, round hole. He had a lot of talent to work with and decided he knew what role they should play regardless of whether it fit their skill. Patrick Roy walked out of Montreal for similar reasons and hopefully we have not driven Taylor Hall away the same way.

Look at the offensive talent and tell me why in two years he could not get the power play to work.

He preached accountability and the only one he held accountable was Yak.

With the game tied or in OT he put out the worst D he could find on the bench. That's just dumb.

He called out his players to the press. Sather would defend his players publicly and coach them personally. Mact was bad as well with calling guys out who did not deserve it, we will see if he has learned.

I wish him the best, I hope he goes and reflects on the opportunity he was given and because he was stubborn he blew it. He should definitely be better the next time (can't be much worse).

 

[noeticfuzz]

"He preached accountability and the only one he held accountable was Yak."

But he didn't - he made a scape goat out of an easy target in attempt to show the room/media/mgmt how much he could 'demand' accountability.

Pure bully move.

 

[Vagabond]

I wish I could suck at my job and get paid for two years after I'm fired!

Good Luck Eakins! I didn't like you one bit as a coach but you do seem like a decent person in the real world!

Please get hired on by Burke and succeed so that it makes our organization look that much worse!

 

[Vagabond]

so did Renny and Krueger....and the results were the same...sense a theme here?

Renney/Krueger showed improvement every season.. so really, its far worse!