Well, now's your chance. Sound off!
Marc Crawford
First-ever Head Coach of the Colorado Avalanche, won the Stanley Cup in the team's inaugural season in Denver. Things came to a rather contentious end between him and the organization after an embarrassing first round exit in the 1998 playoffs, when Crawford was the only head coach in franchise history to be traded (after he was fired), sent to Brian Burke and the Vancouver Canucks for a draft pick. Crawford's legacy in Denver was forever sullied by the Todd Bertuzzi/Steve Moore incident.
Bob Hartley
Until recently, the winningest head coach in Avalanche history, who also led the team to their second Stanley Cup victory in 2001. Fired in 2002 by Pierre Lacroix due to simmering tensions between him and players like Peter Forsberg and Alex Tanguay. Hartley's reputation has taken some hits in recent years, most notably at the hands former player Scott Parker.
Tony Granato
Lacroix's hand-picked successor to Hartley, Granato's tenure definitely qualifies as the strangest, as he is the Grover Cleveland of this list. Initially taking over for Hartley in December 2002, Granato would lead the Avs one more season (notable for having Paul Kariya and Teemu Selanne on the roster) before a year-long lockout. In 2005 the Avalanche hired Joel Quenneville, and Granato voluntarily took a demotion to assistant coach until Quenneville and the Avalanche mutually parted ways in 2008. Taking back the reins in the 2008-2009 season, the team missed the playoffs for the first time in Avalanche history and Granato, along with General Manager Francois Giguere, was fired. Reportedly Lacroix offered the head coaching job to Patrick Roy around this time and he refused.
Joe Sacco
Previously the head coach of the Avalanche affiliate at the time, Sacco enjoyed initial success with a retooled Avalanche roster led by rookies Matt Duchene and Ryan O'Reilly. They made the playoffs his first season but not in the next three, and he was fired in 2013. Sacco's tenure might be unfairly judged as the team made it clear they were rebuilding during this time, and also waiting until the next CBA was in place. During Sacco's time, the team abruptly shifted from a more up-tempo style to a more conservative dump-and-chase, defensive scheme, evidenced when they dealt away puckmoving defenseman John-Michael Liles and effectively replaced him with stay-at-home defender Jan Hejda. Players like Erik Johnson had some unkind things to say about Sacco following his departure. It should be noted that of all the bench bosses to have been fired by the Avs, Sacco remains the only one never to get another head coaching gig.
Patrick Roy
Roy, the greatest goaltender in franchise history, is also the only Avalanche coach to win the Jack Adams Trophy during his time behind Colorado's bench. That rookie season appeared to be a portent of things to come, but alas, the Avalanche would fail to qualify for the playoffs the following two seasons, and Roy surprised Joe Sakic and the rest of the organization when he resigned in 2016.
Jared Bednar
Ironically, the winningest head coach in Nordiques/Avalanche history is also the losingest, if you go by single-season records. Unlike the other coaches on this list, Bednar's first season was an abject disaster, not only the worst mark in franchise history, but the worst mark in the NHL's modern era. Luckily for him, things only got better from there, eventually leading to the team's third Stanley Cup championship. He is, as of this writing, the third-longest tenured NHL head coach behind Jon Cooper and Mike Sullivan.
So...let's sound off. Who was the best? Who was the worst? I have my opinions, but for once...I'll shut up and listen for a bit.
Marc Crawford
First-ever Head Coach of the Colorado Avalanche, won the Stanley Cup in the team's inaugural season in Denver. Things came to a rather contentious end between him and the organization after an embarrassing first round exit in the 1998 playoffs, when Crawford was the only head coach in franchise history to be traded (after he was fired), sent to Brian Burke and the Vancouver Canucks for a draft pick. Crawford's legacy in Denver was forever sullied by the Todd Bertuzzi/Steve Moore incident.
Bob Hartley
Until recently, the winningest head coach in Avalanche history, who also led the team to their second Stanley Cup victory in 2001. Fired in 2002 by Pierre Lacroix due to simmering tensions between him and players like Peter Forsberg and Alex Tanguay. Hartley's reputation has taken some hits in recent years, most notably at the hands former player Scott Parker.
Tony Granato
Lacroix's hand-picked successor to Hartley, Granato's tenure definitely qualifies as the strangest, as he is the Grover Cleveland of this list. Initially taking over for Hartley in December 2002, Granato would lead the Avs one more season (notable for having Paul Kariya and Teemu Selanne on the roster) before a year-long lockout. In 2005 the Avalanche hired Joel Quenneville, and Granato voluntarily took a demotion to assistant coach until Quenneville and the Avalanche mutually parted ways in 2008. Taking back the reins in the 2008-2009 season, the team missed the playoffs for the first time in Avalanche history and Granato, along with General Manager Francois Giguere, was fired. Reportedly Lacroix offered the head coaching job to Patrick Roy around this time and he refused.
Joe Sacco
Previously the head coach of the Avalanche affiliate at the time, Sacco enjoyed initial success with a retooled Avalanche roster led by rookies Matt Duchene and Ryan O'Reilly. They made the playoffs his first season but not in the next three, and he was fired in 2013. Sacco's tenure might be unfairly judged as the team made it clear they were rebuilding during this time, and also waiting until the next CBA was in place. During Sacco's time, the team abruptly shifted from a more up-tempo style to a more conservative dump-and-chase, defensive scheme, evidenced when they dealt away puckmoving defenseman John-Michael Liles and effectively replaced him with stay-at-home defender Jan Hejda. Players like Erik Johnson had some unkind things to say about Sacco following his departure. It should be noted that of all the bench bosses to have been fired by the Avs, Sacco remains the only one never to get another head coaching gig.
Patrick Roy
Roy, the greatest goaltender in franchise history, is also the only Avalanche coach to win the Jack Adams Trophy during his time behind Colorado's bench. That rookie season appeared to be a portent of things to come, but alas, the Avalanche would fail to qualify for the playoffs the following two seasons, and Roy surprised Joe Sakic and the rest of the organization when he resigned in 2016.
Jared Bednar
Ironically, the winningest head coach in Nordiques/Avalanche history is also the losingest, if you go by single-season records. Unlike the other coaches on this list, Bednar's first season was an abject disaster, not only the worst mark in franchise history, but the worst mark in the NHL's modern era. Luckily for him, things only got better from there, eventually leading to the team's third Stanley Cup championship. He is, as of this writing, the third-longest tenured NHL head coach behind Jon Cooper and Mike Sullivan.
So...let's sound off. Who was the best? Who was the worst? I have my opinions, but for once...I'll shut up and listen for a bit.