Michel Therrien

[19VJ17]

It is the coach's job to put his team in the best position possible. MT doesn't seem to do that on his own accord.

Oh......So rolling 4 lines and 6 d-man throught the stanely cup playoffs is stupid???
Starting his 4th line in the offensive zone is stupid???
Starting his 4th line against a tired NYR 1st line is stupid???

But being a complainer and whiner is intelligent
Are you a team player???

 

[TheCanasianfrasian]

Cuz u no wud? Thair is an agrimund in de ligue dat u do nut wotch de other team praktiss

 

[VirginiaMtlExpat]

the hate for MT on this board is unfair.

I don't think bad coaches ever make to the conference finals.

Come on. It does happen. Jean Perron won the Stanley Cup, and yet, who would hire him right now? And, Mike Keenan anyone?

 

[Hackett]

He must be doing something right in the sense that the players play hard. If the players don't believe in their coach or if they have had enough, they can get him fired pretty quick...that hasn't been the case.

From a fan's distance, its hard to make a complete judgment on his ability, because we don't see everything that being a good coach entails.

I can only say that there have been some lineup decisions that I don't agree with, but all in all, this team has gone further and did better in the regular season than I expected, so thats another checkmark for MT

 

[Mario le Magnifique]

Hilarious people still subscribe to this theory, but not surprising. It's the same story for the players this board likes and dislikes. Everything Subban/Eller/Galchenyuk/etc do well is because of themselves, anything they do wrong is the coach's/GM's/linemate's fault.

A convenient narrative because thinking about hockey is hard.

No you didn't get it. If the team performs bad, it's because DD is too short.

 

[TheCanasianfrasian]

He must be doing something right in the sense that the players play hard. If the players don't believe in their coach or if they have had enough, they can get him fired pretty quick...that hasn't been the case.

From a fan's distance, its hard to make a complete judgment on his ability, because we don't see everything that being a good coach entails.

I can only say that there have been some lineup decisions that I don't agree with, but all in all, this team has gone further and did better in the regular season than I expected, so thats another checkmark for MT

He may not be the best strategist but he is clearly a good motivator and its also clear that the players about buying into his coolaid and are playing his system.

Gorgy!? What ur favorite steakhouse?

Moishes?!

If u got hav tree bigmak b4 de game u not gonna aprissiatte de meal!

 

[Markov4Captain]

Therrien deserves credit for how far he's brought this team. I think Clement Jodoin also plays a huge roll in the team's success. Therrien may not be the best tactical coach but if you surround him with the proper guys, he can motivate a group. He has a good feel for the team and for the most part, he know which players to push and which players to leave be. For instance, he's called out Subban on countless occasions to the media-do you think he does the same to Vanek, Pacioretty or Plekanec? He knows which players respond to tough love and which ones prefer a smoother touch.

 

[Andy]

Perhaps it's just because of the excessive amount of hate that he gets that people defend, but I don't see how a coach is beyond reproach because of the team's record. Michel Therrien had the Penguins a few wins shy of the Stanley Cup and that wasn't enough to keep his job safe the following season. Sometimes a roster is so good that it can get away with average or below average coaching, there are multiple examples of this.


I find it weird how we can criticize players, but not coaches. I also find it interesting how we can say x player had an awful regular season, but is doing quite well in the playoffs, yet we cannot apply that line of reasoning to coaches. Personally, I think the way MT has coached this post-season is night and day from the regular season. Although he still is slow to react, he's doing it much faster than in the regular season and it's paying off. There are some aspects of his method that he remains stubborn with - some that still come to bite him the ass - but he's done a much better job now than he has all year.

I also completely disagree with those who say that MT is doing all he can with an average team. This is the best Canadiens lineup they've had in years, by far. Eller, Bourque, Briere in the bottom 6 is a luxury most teams wish they had. I bet a lot of team's wish they had two +30 goal scorers, a Vezina goalie and two D-men that can eat 25 minutes a night, one being a Norris winner. Despite their record, the Habs underachieved for most of the regular season imo, regularly outplayed and depended too much on their goaltending, way more than a team with that kind of talent should have. The post-season is different. The Habs won a couple of games they shouldn't have (one in the Boston series and one in the Rangers), but almost all their wins are the result of 90% of the roster and coaching staff clicking and for that MT his staff deserve credit. It still doesn't change the fact that the regular season was uber frustrating to follow.

Just like what happened in Pittsburgh, I don't think MT should yet have his place cemented with an extension. The team has a lot of question marks moving into next year, let's see how the coach reacts with potential changes and holes to his lineup before declaring that he is their man.

 

[PricePkPatch*]

He may not be the best strategist but he is clearly a good motivator and its also clear that the players about buying into his coolaid and are playing his system.

Gorgy!? What ur favorite steakhouse?

Moishes?!

If u got hav tree bigmak b4 de game u not gonna aprissiatte de meal!

can you stop badly spelling your words meant to mock someone's french accent?

Yes. He has sub-par english. Get over it.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

Just like what happened in Pittsburgh, I don't think MT should yet have his place cemented with an extension. The team has a lot of question marks moving into next year, let's see how the coach reacts with potential changes and holes to his lineup before declaring that he is their man.

Get ready to be disappointed. He's going to get an extension.

 

[VirginiaMtlExpat]

Perhaps it's just because of the excessive amount of hate that he gets that people defend, but I don't see how a coach is beyond reproach because of the team's record.
...

I find it weird how we can criticize players, but not coaches. I also find it interesting how we can say x player had an awful regular season, but is doing quite well in the playoffs, but we cannot apply that line of reasoning to coaches.
...

I also completely disagree with those who say that MT is doing all he can with an average team.
...

Just like what happened in Pittsburgh....

Tremendous post. Describes my perspective to a T. Especially the bolded. My view is that maybe MB had a chat with him; perhaps several times.

 

[Rapala]

Tremendous post. Describes my perspective to a T. Especially the bolded. My view is that maybe MB had a chat with him; perhaps several times.

The funny thing is when you get to this point in the real season, it often comes down to who wants it more. I don't see that we have made any adjustments that amount to a hill of beans. We are still very susceptible to the same defensive breakdowns we started the series with. It is all about who has the most energy and who gets the breaks, key saves etc. Coaching should never enter the equation if it does then there IS a problem. The matchups are set and it boils down to execution, short shifts, crisp line changes all those small details that win hockey games.

 

[TheCanasianfrasian]

can you stop badly spelling your words meant to mock someone's french accent?

Yes. He has sub-par english. Get over it.

wud wud be de point of dat prusty?

wud be you gally?

 

[PricePkPatch*]

wud wud be de point of dat prusty?

wud be you gally?

It's bigotism and it's getting on my nerve. Drop or be reported.

 

[Habs_Apostle]

The funny thing is when you get to this point in the real season, it often comes down to who wants it more. I don't see that we have made any adjustments that amount to a hill of beans. We are still very susceptible to the same defensive breakdowns we started the series with. It is all about who has the most energy and who gets the breaks, key saves etc. Coaching should never enter the equation if it does then there IS a problem. The matchups are set and it boils down to execution, short shifts, crisp line changes all those small details that win hockey games.

If so, then haven't they shown that when they execute that they're the better team, whether that be against Tampa, Boston, or the Rangers. So why the frick keep blaming the coaches? And for all the wee lineup changes MT gets criticized for, you could easily do the same for any of the coaches we've played against, heck for any team.

And, imagine, for example, if every single time Subban made an error, we went off about how he was a horrible defensemen. Yeah, he makes errors, but he also makes some amazing plays. Same with MT, he makes some bad decisions, but he's also made some great decisions. I think what most here want is just a balanced view of things. Is that asking too much?

 

[MD thaivuN]

Get ready to be disappointed. He's going to get an extension.

Most of the time a coach gets extended, he gets fired soon after. maybe it's a good thing to have MT extended

 

[hockeyfan2k11]

Oh......So rolling 4 lines and 6 d-man throught the stanely cup playoffs is stupid???
Starting his 4th line in the offensive zone is stupid???
Starting his 4th line against a tired NYR 1st line is stupid???

But being a complainer and whiner is intelligent
Are you a team player???

Do you analyze games at all or do you just cheer when the team wins and cry when they lose?

Yes, starting your 4th line and 3rd pairing D against The Rangers 1st line that was buzzing all game with Stepan scoring 2 goals. Yes.

 

[hockeyfan2k11]

Hilarious people still subscribe to this theory, but not surprising. It's the same story for the players this board likes and dislikes. Everything Subban/Eller/Galchenyuk/etc do well is because of themselves, anything they do wrong is the coach's/GM's/linemate's fault.

A convenient narrative because thinking about hockey is hard.

Right. MT transformed PK

 

[DAChampion]

This isn't the Therrien we saw in the regular season. He does things like juggle lines and allow Subban to play 30 minutes a game.

 

[habsfanatics*]

Both goals against the Briere line started off with faceoff loss in the NYR zone. So I guess MT is stupid for starting his 4th line in the offensive zone...much better to start the 4th line in the D-zone
The first goal should never have went in and I am sure Dustin would love to have that one back...............
The 2nd goal again started in the NYR zone against a tired Richards line that had just ice the puck . MTL lost the draw and the NYR were able to change and MTL got scored on. Markov lost a foot race to the puck to Nash, who was able to put the puck into the slot and the rest is history.

So please tell me what MT did wrong on these goals???
When do you play your 4th line???
Have any of the so called expert coaches on this board coached anything in there life???
Do you know what TEAM means???
Or do you think MTL should only play 2 lines and 3 d-man the whole game and every series

Appeal to authority and insulting posters/questioning their backgrounds is usually an indication that your arguments suck.

Coaching is simply overrated, the only time it matters is when you got one that sucks. I'm not a fan of Therrien's, but we could do worse. I think he's adequate, no way do I think he's very good. Teams can still win with a poor coach, in fact, it happens all the time, teams can still lose with a great coach, happens all the time.

Crediting Therrien every time we win is foolish. He's not on the ice, his goaltender has been outplaying the other guy with two teams that fairly evenly matched and we're still down 3-2 to the Rags. **** happens, I'm not gonig to hop on the fire Therrien bandwagon as his results suggest he is doing pretty good, but I certainly wouldn't throw him to the keys to the Bell Centre and lock him up long term either. He is what he is, a very average coach who's shtick usually runs out rather quickly.

 

[habsfanatics*]

the hate for MT on this board is unfair.

I don't think bad coaches ever make to the conference finals.

You'd be mistaken. Bad coaches can even win cups.

 

[Spearmint Rhino]

He's got 10 playoff wins this year which is the most by any Habs coach in over 2 decades and he's done a great job getting the guys to bounce back after tough losses or bad outings

He still does things that boggle my mind - like saving his timeout last game when the Rangers scored 3 in a row but he's also done some pretty good line juggling and made some tough decisions like bringing in DT, can't see how he hasn't earned an extension

 

[SB164]

I find it weird how we can criticize players, but not coaches

What are you talking about? This is Montreal, we criticize everything and everyone, especially coaches.

He still does things that boggle my mind - like saving his timeout last game when the Rangers scored 3 in a row

He mentioned that during the press conference. Even though the Rangers had tied it, he didn't sense that his players were panicking. He thought about using it but he noted that the team still seemed confident on the bench. The gamble paid off cause the Habs scored a few mins later.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

Hilarious people still subscribe to this theory, but not surprising. It's the same story for the players this board likes and dislikes. Everything Subban/Eller/Galchenyuk/etc do well is because of themselves, anything they do wrong is the coach's/GM's/linemate's fault.

A convenient narrative because thinking about hockey is hard.

I just thank my stars every day that MT was here to make PK a better person.

 

[hockeyfan2k11]

He's got 10 playoff wins this year which is the most by any Habs coach in over 2 decades and he's done a great job getting the guys to bounce back after tough losses or bad outings

He still does things that boggle my mind - like saving his timeout last game when the Rangers scored 3 in a row but he's also done some pretty good line juggling and made some tough decisions like bringing in DT, can't see how he hasn't earned an extension

He also has the best team we've had since winning the Cup. I refuse to crown this guy. And as much as I dislike him as our coach, he should not be fired. But he should have a short leash IMO.