Confirmed with Link: Washington Capitals Hire Peter Laviolette to be 19th Head Coach in Franchise History

[Brian23]

Trotz turned things around quickly and made them look like a team again. That said, his management of the rosters during the next two playoff years were pretty bad and I agree that he did not earn an extension prior to 2017-18. I actually wanted him fired after 2016-17 because he'd never been past the second round in two decades, and I figured if he couldn't get it done with better rosters... why should we think he could get them to the promised land with less talent?

Fully agree. I understand the 18 team will be the Capitals team heralded for generations, but I'm not sure I've witnessed a team that could full on dominate as much as the 16 Capitals. That month of January where they were averaging something like 5+ goals a game while only allowing 2 goals against (inflated by one game where they gave up 8 to Pitt) was insane to watch. I figured, if they weren't gonna win it with that group then Trotz wasn't gonna be the reason they won it and they'd need luck to get it done.

 

[TheLegendOfPatPeake]

Was Todd Reirden not also BMacs guy?

Sure.

 

[Portable Mink]

1) Trotz wanted to leave because he wasnt extended prior. I get that.
2) TR had to be named given we protected him and all signs pointed to him being the right call
3) I think TR will be a guy like Bruce Cassidy in that he is a good coach and needs to learn from a few things he is deficient at and will have a great second stint somewhere. I would suggest this be somewhere with a young team.

 

[um]

1) Trotz wanted to leave because he wasnt extended prior. I get that.
2) TR had to be named given we protected him and all signs pointed to him being the right call
3) I think TR will be a guy like Bruce Cassidy in that he is a good coach and needs to learn from a few things he is deficient at and will have a great second stint somewhere. I would suggest this be somewhere with a young team.

Agreed, I highly doubt TR is done. He could be coaching Pittsburgh soon with the last 2 years being so bad for them.

 

[HTFN]

I get what you mean, I only factored in goals as the primary base, since I was responding to a post claiming he would be an all-star based on his even strength goals. At the end of the day, Vrana is a significantly better even strength goal scorer than he is a powerplay goalscorer. He will likely never be an all-star playmaker (which is fine of course).

But that just doesn't make sense. You're treating all PPTOI equally and ignoring his role and position with his current time, but it doesn't work that way. He's a better ES goal scorer (at the moment) because those are the only times his line puts him in a real position to score. As a PP player in his role he's more productive than a lot of current Capitals and some past ones (like Johansson).

You need to imagine a world in which his PPTOI increases and Ovechkin isn't deserving the large majority of the shots, because right now even when Vrana is getting PP time Ovechkin is generally still out there as a better option. If Vrana were on another team, potting just an adequate number of PP goals with an increased role, he'd likely be an All-Star candidate and one of the league's better young goal scorers.

 

[txpd]

At the end of the day, Vrana is a significantly better even strength goal scorer than he is a powerplay goalscorer. He will likely never be an all-star playmaker (which is fine of course).

You....uh....You dont know why he doesnt score on the pp i see. He shoots left handed. Thats all. Thats it. The Caps with Ovechkin and Carlson and Oshie/Wilson in the shooting spots use exclusively right shot shooters on their pp units. They pass the puck to those players with elite left shooting centers, Backstrom and Kuznetsov, so that all 3 can one time shoot the puck.

Vrana as a left shot doesnt fit the Caps pp scheme and they dont use him. When they do, he is in a passing spot and not a shooting spot.

It has NOTHING to do with his ability.

 

[Portable Mink]

Vrana as a left shot would be great on the PP if they decided to not use one of backstrom or kuzy and having Carlson as the main distributor much like the Tampa PP with Stamkos and Kuch cannons either side. I know we tried it very briefly but I think its harder to stop than ours which is built from one side of the ice.

 

[Ridley Simon]

Agreed, I highly doubt TR is done. He could be coaching Pittsburgh soon with the last 2 years being so bad for them.

Wouldn’t be shocked if it was as soon as next “season”. I don’t think Sullivan’s leash is all that long.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

This thread was quite a blast from the past. Some really hilarious stuff in there.

I know you can’t read this, but I loved you fawning all over Babcock and “preferring Bylsma to Trotz”....hilarious indeed.

 

[um]

Wouldn’t be shocked if it was as soon as next “season”. I don’t think Sullivan’s leash is all that long.

and than Sullivan will be picked up that offseason... its a strange gig.

 

[tenken00]

and than Sullivan will be picked up that offseason... its a strange gig.

Its crazy how short the NHL coach lifespan is nowadays. Even for 2 time Cup winning coaches.

 

[txpd]

Vrana as a left shot would be great on the PP if they decided to not use one of backstrom or kuzy and having Carlson as the main distributor much like the Tampa PP with Stamkos and Kuch cannons either side. I know we tried it very briefly but I think its harder to stop than ours which is built from one side of the ice.

The problem with that is puck management. You go from an elite like Backstrom on the halfwall moving the puck to 4 options to a guy that is a shoot first player in that spot. That means the puck is managed with Carlson at the point or Backstrom below the goal line. Both Carlson and Backstrom have far fewer options to pass then puck there than the halfwall player. You defeat the purpose of that pp.

Kucherov doesnt score on their pp anyway. He has 4 ppg's and 21ppa's. He is doing what Backstrom does.

 

[txpd]

Its crazy how short the NHL coach lifespan is nowadays. Even for 2 time Cup winning coaches.

Coaches can have the most immediate and most impact of any coaching change in pro sports. It makes perfect sense that the other end of that can come quicker as well.

 

[Hivemind]

Coaches can have the most immediate and most impact of any coaching change in pro sports. It makes perfect sense that the other end of that can come quicker as well.

Wut

 

[txpd]

Wut

NHL teams often get a serious bump in performance after a coaching change. That regular boost also indicates that the burn rate on coaches is fast. The impact speed in true on both ends

 

[Hivemind]

NHL teams often get a serious bump in performance after a coaching change. That regular boost also indicates that the burn rate on coaches is fast. The impact speed in true on both ends

Read what you actually wrote in that post.

 

[g00n]

Read what you actually wrote in that post.

I understood what he was saying.

His point is coaches have short shelf lives in the NHL partly because their usual net effect is a fleeting jolt of new energy rather than a slow burn that lasts for many years.

If that weren't true would we see all these "honeymoon periods" for new coaches, and so much coaching turnover? Wouldn't we have more coaches staying with teams for longer periods? Would we have so many coaches tearing it up one year but losing the job soon after?

The alternative explanation is every owner and GM in the league collectively shares the same exact hair trigger tolerance for not winning a Cup, which is just irrational behavior. But it could still be true.

 

[Empty Goal Net]

I understood what he was saying.

His point is coaches have short shelf lives in the NHL partly because their usual net effect is a fleeting jolt of new energy rather than a slow burn that lasts for many years.

If that weren't true would we see all these "honeymoon periods" for new coaches, and so much coaching turnover? Wouldn't we have more coaches staying with teams for longer periods? Would we have so many coaches tearing it up one year but losing the job soon after?

The alternative explanation is every owner and GM in the league collectively shares the same exact hair trigger tolerance for not winning a Cup, which is just irrational behavior. But it could still be true.

Another factor could be that in the salary cap era, teams whose personnel may fit well into a coach's preferred strategy/tendencies cannot be maintained for more than a few seasons, and it becomes more difficult for a GM to replace players who depart thru FA or whose skills diminish with players of the same calibre and strengths. And as those things happen, many coaches find it difficult to adjust in a timely manner to the changed circumstances.

 

[hockeykicker]

7. The moment the Capitals committed to a coaching change, word filtered that Laviolette was the favourite. During the hiring’s media conference, GM Brian MacLellan said there were two in-person interviews. Those were Laviolette and Mike Babcock. There was a conversation with Bruce Boudreau, but it didn’t go far. There was a zoom connection with Gerard Gallant, but border quarantines affected his candidacy. Because MacLellan was in the U.S. and Gallant in Atlantic Canada, face-to-face meetings were logistically challenging.
Babcock’s interview apparently came during some kind of socially distanced family dinner/cookout, and there was some buzz it went so well it tightened the race. (MacLellan would not comment.)
In the end, I think Laviolette was the choice anyway. However, another coach told me that he believed Washington was a little concerned about the “noise” around Babcock, especially since we don’t know when next year will begin. Without games, the focus is on the past, not the present or future. To be honest, I’m not sure Babcock would be crazy about that reality either. For the time being, he remains a guest coach at NCAA Vermont, helping the Catamounts prepare for their season.

From friedman

 

[txpd]

Another factor could be that in the salary cap era, teams whose personnel may fit well into a coach's preferred strategy/tendencies cannot be maintained for more than a few seasons, and it becomes more difficult for a GM to replace players who depart thru FA or whose skills diminish with players of the same calibre and strengths. And as those things happen, many coaches find it difficult to adjust in a timely manner to the changed circumstances.

For the good coaches that get immediate action to their message and success on the ice, there is also an immediate price to be paid for not winning the cup. Good NHL coaches get total buy in from their players and they get improvement and they get playoff births and they are ready to win because they believe. When they dont win, whether they should have won or not, it hurts and it can take the momentum away.

We have had reports that the cup winning Caps were emotionally trashed after losing to the Penguins again after another Presi season. Trotz said that he was worried about the team. He said that Backstrom took it particularly hard and it effected him. They nearly crashed and burned. That kind of thing happens with every good coach that gets his players to be all in and then dont get that reward.

 

[BHD]

Since you're talking about Rierden, who oversaw the PP when it was clicking? There where a couple seasons where it looked like something out of a video game, only to falter near the end.

 

[Ovechkins Wodka]

From friedman

I saw RMNB post try to take credit for not hiring Babcock.

 

[g00n]

For the good coaches that get immediate action to their message and success on the ice, there is also an immediate price to be paid for not winning the cup. Good NHL coaches get total buy in from their players and they get improvement and they get playoff births and they are ready to win because they believe. When they dont win, whether they should have won or not, it hurts and it can take the momentum away.

We have had reports that the cup winning Caps were emotionally trashed after losing to the Penguins again after another Presi season. Trotz said that he was worried about the team. He said that Backstrom took it particularly hard and it effected him. They nearly crashed and burned. That kind of thing happens with every good coach that gets his players to be all in and then dont get that reward.

This is especially true if you have the front office talking about a "window of opportunity". When that window seems to be closing you will lose the room more easily.

But to augment your point, if you have a coach pushing players to sacrifice for X goal because "it will all be worth it", when they do so and come up empty it rattles their faith. If a coach is to have longevity he can't make false promises, but he still has to find a way to motivate. People who think money and pro status are enough motivation alone are going to be disappointed.

 

[txpd]

This is especially true if you have the front office talking about a "window of opportunity". When that window seems to be closing you will lose the room more easily.

But to augment your point, if you have a coach pushing players to sacrifice for X goal because "it will all be worth it", when they do so and come up empty it rattles their faith. If a coach is to have longevity he can't make false promises, but he still has to find a way to motivate. People who think money and pro status are enough motivation alone are going to be disappointed.

I think that the amount of all in effort and sacrifice required to be competitive in the NHL is just greater than the other sports we follow. I dont think any one of us wants to feel what blocking an NHL shot feels like. I think of Brooks Orpik not being able to walk stairs after a game. Just a small pull back from that commitment and you come off your edge. Which is clearly what happened to the Caps. They simply didnt feel it anymore.

 

[txpd]

Since you're talking about Rierden, who oversaw the PP when it was clicking? There where a couple seasons where it looked like something out of a video game, only to falter near the end.

Pretty sure that was Forsythe. The long and short of the Caps pp is how committed the oppo is to taking Ovechkin away and how the other 4 guys respond. Its basically always been the same pp game