Guy Boucher

[Satoru Gojo]

SensChirp tweeted this out last night while reminiscing about the 2017 run

Just wondering what the general consensus is on Boucher with him now being gone from the organization for over the year. His first season was incredibly successful but things got significantly worse the following season up until his dismissal

Was Boucher a victim of the Melnyk and Dorion gong show? or do you think the message just fall through after 2016-2017

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[JungleBeat]

The team had an easy road to the ECF and played some unsustainable hockey while being carried by EK. Those double overtime periods in game 7 was PATHETIC. How are you going to trap in game 7 OT? Try and score a goal and risk everything.

I wanted the team to hire Boucher and was happy when he was hired. He was hard headed and didn’t change things up.

 

[Sens of Anarchy]

Big part of the team success and turn around that year. Got buy in and it worked.
Smart hockey man. Very stubborn in his approach. Should be working in the NHL as an assistant x and o's guy.

 

[Nac Mac Feegle]

Boucher would be amazing as an assistant coach. That's really his true calling. But not as the boss. His shtick as a head coach has only a 1-2 year effective range.

 

[Agent Zub]

Boucher had a mediocre team and almost won a cup.

Maybe the best coach Ottawa has had in the last 15 years.

 

[danielpalfredsson]

Sometimes I think he was a genius, then I look back and see a guy stubbornly clinging to his system that he no longer had the personnel to play. It is fascinating that history repeated itself with Tampa Bay and Ottawa. He overachieved and almost took subpar teams to the Cup Final, and then had things fall apart very shortly after.

The Sens fans can thank him for Chabot's great contract, because he probably helped delay his breakout by a year when he tried to hamfist Chabot into the right side in his system.

 

[Pierre from Orleans]

"you don't feed steak to a baby"

 

[Agent Zub]

Sometimes I think he was a genius, then I look back and see a guy stubbornly clinging to his system that he no longer had the personnel to play. It is fascinating that history repeated itself with Tampa Bay and Ottawa. He overachieved and almost took subpar teams to the Cup Final, and then had things fall apart very shortly after.

The Sens fans can thank him for Chabot's great contract, because he probably helped delay his breakout by a year when he tried to hamfist Chabot into the right side in his system.

I will never forget the OT he started with Pageau, Smith, and Ceci on the ice with Stone, Karlsson, Hoffman etc on the bench.

The opposing team scored before Ottawa could even touch the puck.

 

[Samsquanch]

Sometimes I think he was a genius, then I look back and see a guy stubbornly clinging to his system that he no longer had the personnel to play. It is fascinating that history repeated itself with Tampa Bay and Ottawa. He overachieved and almost took subpar teams to the Cup Final, and then had things fall apart very shortly after.

The Sens fans can thank him for Chabot's great contract, because he probably helped delay his breakout by a year when he tried to hamfist Chabot into the right side in his system.

He was incredibly bright and well spoken, and clearly a good hockey strategist. But it was his inability to adapt that killed him, again. Whether were talking about making in game adjustments, or adjusting his system from game to game or even from season to season, Boucher's stubbornness was his ultimate undoing.

He was convinced that his way was the right way, and while hes not wrong that you can get good results by playing his system, its just not worth the trade off playing a style of hockey that a large percentage of his teams own fans and players clearly hate and dont enjoy seeing.

Heck even if we had won the cup a large portion of hockey fans were ready to completely discredit the Sens because of how Boucher had them playing. While its hilarious on many levels, it was still not a good feeling being the modern day equivalent of NJ Devils team that sucks the fun out of the game. Now add in his love affair with some very forgettable bottom line players, and his philosophy on how to (mis)use young players, and I cant help but have more bad memories of his time in Ottawa then good ones.

 

[Knave]

He's a coach that does good work but wears on the players quickly. It's just too bad we lost in overtime to the Penguins.

 

[Erik Alfredsson]

His system was amazing until it wasn't. People just figured us out after that season and he did absolutely nothing to change that. But that 2017 team was very effective and the players were very bought in.

 

[God Says No]

Stubborn one trick pony.

 

[DrakeAndJosh]

I always appreciated him for being the only true professional in the organization last year when we were at the absolute rock bottom in terms of respectability.

Other than that I echo everyone else in this thread. He did incredibly well in 2017, for that one season he’s probably our best coach in franchise history outside of Murray (and maybe Martin), but way too stubborn to last more than a couple years on any team.

 

[dumbdick]

His system was amazing until it wasn't. People just figured us out after that season and he did absolutely nothing to change that. But that 2017 team was very effective and the players were very bought in.

Yeah. This nails it. He had a great system that worked until teams countered it and then it failed catastrophically. Made some bad personnel and on-ice decisions. We also had a joke of a powerplay.

Paddock 2.0, but substantially better.

 

[Do Make Say Think]

Great coach who couldn't adapt. It was a re-tread of Maclean really: one they understood that Melnyk wasn't ever going to give them the players they needed to progress, they focused on saving their head coaching careers and failed.

 

[BankStreetParade]

Really wonder what kind of results he could have produced with an "above average" roster. Seems like a guy who can get every ounce of performance out of a group, for a limited time.

 

[BloodRedArmy]

The team had an easy road to the ECF and played some unsustainable hockey while being carried by EK. Those double overtime periods in game 7 was PATHETIC. How are you going to trap in game 7 OT? Try and score a goal and risk everything.

I wanted the team to hire Boucher and was happy when he was hired. He was hard headed and didn’t change things up.

There is no such thing.

 

[IlTerrifico]

His system was the best option for a team that was vastly undertalented due to frugality.

With very average talent he installed the left wing lock with awesome, tough left side defensemen for it in Methot, Phaneuf and Boro, and nearly took out 3 teams in a row in the playoffs despite being underfunded by millions.

Once Methot was gone the next year and replaced by the comedic insertion of Johnny Oduya, and Phaneuf lost another step, his system was dead and the horrid, cheap roster was exposed.

He was stubborn, but nobody was going to succeed with D+ talent. That said, his failure in game 7 OT vs Pitt to set players free to try to score, either when Crosby and Malkin were off the ice, or maybe putting out his best 5 on occasion, was painful to watch. I think they had 2 shots in the first OT.

Noteworthy is that the 3 deadline forward acquisitions that playoff year Stalberg, Burrows and Wingels had 0 goals, 7 points in 41 playoff games, and a -8. Cheapo's cheapies, instead of getting some real acquisitions, may have been the difference in a Cup final appearance

 

[Alf Silfversson]

Smart hockey guy.

Unable to adapt to modern changes.

Professional.

Hope he gets a chance as an assistant coach.

 

[OgieO]

Sometimes I think he was a genius, then I look back and see a guy stubbornly clinging to his system that he no longer had the personnel to play. It is fascinating that history repeated itself with Tampa Bay and Ottawa. He overachieved and almost took subpar teams to the Cup Final, and then had things fall apart very shortly after.

The Sens fans can thank him for Chabot's great contract, because he probably helped delay his breakout by a year when he tried to hamfist Chabot into the right side in his system.

I think he was rigid, showed no ability to adapt with the game and that was his undoing. I really liked his people skills, I liked his technical knowledge and his work ethic. Seemed like a legit very good human being. Chirp is right, he was a big part of that run. But not a good head coach for today's game. One trick pony and the NHL is too good these days figuring out a one trick pony. Someone recently said "systems don't work anymore, its all tactics right now". Not sure that's true but he is an extreme that seemed to be only system and once the system is figured out he was toast.

 

[FunkySeeFunkyDoo]

I disagree with people who claim he didn't change. I think there was a dramatic difference in how the team did breakouts in his first season verses seasons two and three. In the first season they had good structure, would move the puck to the forward on the boards, the weak side forward would cut up the center of the ice, the center would provide a short pass option just inside the blue line, and the weak side d-man would push up ice as well -- giving three distinct passing options. It was usually pretty nice to watch.

I think he lost confidence in some of his d-men, or something. Because this changed to -- more often than not -- a simple chip it off the boards or lob it up to center "safe" play. Which of course is really just a turnover.

 

[Tuna99]

His positivity and leadership were sorely needed in Ottawa at the perfect time. Excellent coach, got excellence from his players - Stone, EK, Turris, Methot, Phaneuf - so many players played their best hockey under him.

I liked him and still do. But we have the right coach now.

 

[Sensung]

His positivity and leadership were sorely needed in Ottawa at the perfect time. Excellent coach, got excellence from his players - Stone, EK, Turris, Methot, Phaneuf - so many players played their best hockey under him.

I liked him and still do. But we have the right coach now.

The “right coach”?

You’d think Sens fans would learn that the 1st honeymoon season doesn’t define a coach.

 

[Sweatred]

His positivity and leadership were sorely needed in Ottawa at the perfect time. Excellent coach, got excellence from his players - Stone, EK, Turris, Methot, Phaneuf - so many players played their best hockey under him.

I liked him and still do. But we have the right coach now.

I agree with you. I commonly hear people complain that DJ isn’t playing the kids and possibly threatening their development. In reality he is setting the competition bar high for these kids forcing them to develop into valuable NHL players. We’ve seen other coaches (Boucher) force players into the lineup when they weren’t ready which stalled their development.

It drives me nuts each time they send Brown or whoever down but they will be better players for it. He is the right guy now.

 

[Micklebot]

I agree with you. I commonly hear people complain that DJ isn’t playing the kids and possibly threatening their development. In reality he is setting the competition bar high for these kids forcing them to develop into valuable NHL players. We’ve seen other coaches (Boucher) force players into the lineup when they weren’t ready which stalled their development.

It drives me nuts each time they send Brown or whoever down but they will be better players for it. He is the right guy now.

I feel like this is white-washing the issue.

People complain that playing a top prospect such as Brown or Batherson <10 mins a night with scrubs is potentially hindering development, the solution is either put them in a role suited to their skill set or if they aren't ready for that role send them down.

You are suggesting people want opportunities gifted to the prospects, but that's a straw man. Nobody is asking for players to be gifted chances, though some may disagree on what it takes to earn a chance, people arguing Smith isn't evectively developing the youth just don't thing playing Brown with Sabourin is an effective way to develop an offensive prospect.

I also find it funny how the more things change the more they stay the same, Boucher when here was lambasted for not developing the kids and instead favouring playing vets (anyone remember not feeding steak to a baby?) but now all the sudden sudden Boucher was the guy forcing players into roles they weren't ready for? For the most part, any players forced into roles they weren't ready for would have been the result of insufficient org depth more than Boucher trying to fast track development, he did not give ice time away to youth easily by any means.