Speculation over coaches on the hot seat plus latest on the Oilers and Flames in the final NHL rumor roundup of the regular season.
Which NHL coaches are on the hot seat?
Could the Ottawa Senators pursue Boston Bruins head coach Claude Julien?
SPORTSNET: Damien Cox reports there’s speculation head coach Claude Julien won’t be back with the Boston Bruins, who missed the playoffs for the second straight year. Elliotte Friedman suggests the possibility of Julien landing with the Ottawa Senators should they decide to replace coach Dave Cameron. He also said Joe Sakic and Patrick Roy will remain as the GM and head coach respectively of the Colorado Avalanche. Meanwhile, there are rumblings there could be changes coming for the Arizona Coyotes. Coach Dave Tippett hopes to stay, but there’s uncertainty over Don Maloney’s status as their general manager.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: If Julien or Tippett become available during the offseason they won’t be unemployed for long. Ottawa pundits have been stumping for Julien as a possible replacement for Cameron since mid-March.
Latest on the Oilers.
EDMONTON SUN: Jim Matheson recently listed the top-10 things the Edmonton Oilers need to do for next season. Among them is finding a suitable backup for starting goalie Cam Talbot, land a puck-moving defenseman (like St. Louis’ Kevin Shattenkirk or Anaheim’s Sami Vatanen or Cam Fowler), add a two-way blueliner like the New York Islanders’ Travis Hamonic or Minnesota’s Jonas Brodin by dangling winger Jordan Eberle or center Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, ship out Nail Yakupov for the best return (likely a draft pick) and signs three big-bodied UFAs like Detroit’s Darren Helm, Colorado’s Shawn Matthias and Anaheim’s Jamie McGinn.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Plenty of experienced and affordable backups will be available via free agency this summer for the Oilers if they wish to go that route. Shattenkirk’s availability could depend upon the Blues’ playoff performance, while Vatanen’s depends upon his contract extension talks (he’s a restricted free agent with arbitration rights) with the Ducks. I doubt Fowler will be available.
It’s been widely reported the Islanders’ asking price for Hamonic is a comparable defenseman with a cap-friendly contract, so that means they won’t have interest in Eberle or RNH. The latter, however, was linked to the Wild and Brodin earlier this season in the rumor mill. However, Brodin’s a left-handed shot. Jared Spurgeon might be a better target, but the Wild might not want to part with him. I agree with Matheson that the Oilers will likely only get a draft pick (likely a second rounder) for Yakupov, unless they bundle him into a larger deal. As for his projected UFA targets, I think McGinn could be the best fit.
More on the Oilers and James Reimer.
THE BOSTON GLOBE: Fluto Shinzawa believes changes are coming this summer for the Edmonton Oilers. He expects GM Peter Chiarelli will buy out the remaining year of defenseman Andrew Ference’s contract and let Nikita Nikitin, Eric Gryba and Adam Pardy depart via free agency. It’s expected Chiarelli will retain promising young blueliners Oscar Klefbom and Darnell Nurse, but every other defenseman’s job is up for grabs. Shinzawa also suggests forwards Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Nail Yakupov and Jordan Eberle as prime trade candidates to bring in the blue-line help the Oilers needs.
Shinzawa also notes how well goaltender James Reimer has played since getting traded from the rebuilding Toronto Maple Leafs to the San Jose Sharks. “In eight starts in San Jose, Reimer has gone 6-2-0 with a 1.62 GAA and .938 save percentage,” he writes, suggesting those numbers as proof Reimer could be a worthwhile long-term investment for the Calgary Flames or Carolina Hurricanes. Reimer is eligible for UFA status this summer.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Reimer has proven capable of putting up decent stats on a bad Leafs team, but going to a good club like the Sharks has certainly improved his free-agent value. I can see the Flames or Hurricanes pursuing him this summer.
Before the angry mob of diehard fans come to the defense of Claude Julien, who to this juncture of his career with the Boston Bruins has brought a Stanley Cup, 2 Stanley Cup Finals trips, multiple playoff appearances in consecutive years, presidents trophy, coach of the year award… the list of accolades is worth noting and beyond impressive.
THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH HIM BEING AN ELITE, BEST AVAILABLE COACH AVAILABLE… ECT. Occasionally, or shall I say especially in professional sports there comes a time when changes must be made, difficult decisions for the long term and betterment of the organization in mind. I read the other day in an article unrelated to Claude Julien but it said something along the lines of “sometimes the best player isn’t the right player for your team”… I think the same can be said regarding a coach. At this point the Boston Bruins are exactly what they are, a cusp playoff team who could make it in the last spot or not but with little depth and a lot of development to go before they compete deep into the playoffs. This team has a lot of years to go before being a powerhouse again and to be honest as a die hard fan who follows the Bruins, Providence Bruins, all of the prospects, local teams, colleges… I would rather this team commit to a rebuild that doesn’t include Claude Julien as the head coach. They’re in between being a strong on the puck, heavy style… and a transition, offensive game… the identity isn’t there. The prospects that are coming up in the future are bringing quite a bit of elite skill… it just doesn’t appear this team is heading in the direction that Julien bodes and coaching style he supports.
As hard as it was letting Peter Chiarelli go, Claude Julien will be equally as difficult but it’s the right choice to be made. If the Bruins could go after someone like Sheldon Keefe (Toronto Marlies) head coach… that would be an interesting addition. Fantastic resume, and it’d be nice to see something fresh enter the NHL as opposed to all of the same names of coaches who have made their rounds from eastern to western conference. I wish all the best to Claude Julien, he’s absolutely the best coach available… a team will grab him within 24 hours but 2 years in a row the team was in a playoff position for roughly 90% of the season and each time they collapsed in the final games, the players didn’t look ready each night, no urgency… the coach and the players each take 100% of that blame. This isn’t on Sweeney or Neely at this point because the players each season played themselves into a playoff spot, kept it all season, and blew it at the end… Now if the team made the playoffs, and obviously failed to progress then I’d place the blame on Sweeney and Neely for lack of depth needed to compete in playoffs. But what we all just saw was a direct result of lack of play, urgency, not being ready each night, maybe even lack of motivation… list goes on. (end rant)
I think Claude Julien will be happy to move to another team. He’d be a good hire by pretty well every team that’s looking. Ottawa’s mentioned most often but, if Montreal would like to accentuate a fresh start, he’d be the guy.
BCLeafFan,
I think Julien will be happy as well. I’m not entirely sold that last off season he was content with the Chiarelli firing and subsequently Neely and Sweeney likely sat Julien down and laid out the plans and what they expected in the upcoming season. We saw Julien change some of his coaching style to accommodate (probably to Neely and Sweeney’s request). This move will probably be beneficial to both parties.
On a side note: I’d like to compare the current Bruins state to the Celtics before the Brad Stevens hiring (for those who also follow the NBA)… Rivers was an excellent coach and a lot of people lot their minds when the Celtics parted ways and then hired a college coach, once again many people again lost their minds and said the team was crazy hiring someone who wasn’t a known commodity in the NBA after moving on from what was at the time the best available coach on the market… Rivers had an incredible resume, brought a championship, multi year playoffs, ect… and look how that has turned out. The Celtics were rebuilding, knew they needed to, hired a fresh coach who could assist and rebuilding and molding a completely knew team. Brad Stevens is amongst the conversation as a top 3 option for coach of year… different sports but kind of similar situations.
Julien does seem a good fit for Ottawa, Funny how fans perspectives go. In Ottawa most are wishing hat Melnyk would finally hire an established NHL coach who has been around he block a few times in contrast you are suggesting the Bruins bro Ina. Fresh name. Aka, Maclean, Cameron etc.
The only issue I see is will Melnyk pay the Julien what he is worth and if so would that then cut into the teams external cap,
I agree CJ s a good coach, but I don’t necessarily agree that the season was lost in the 0-5 road trip or the worst record in the nhl for the last 10 games. They had one of the worst home records in the entire league. Could look at the start of the season it was brutal. I can count on one hand less a few fingers how many games Rask has stolen. Not saying Rask was bad, especially with that d in front of him, but he didn’t steal any games. I also agree that this team doesn’t have an identity there isn’t much physical there. Yesterday Neil stood in front of the net with 3 free whacks, that’s when the game changed imo. The team has some size but don’t play that way. Its not that all the defense are bad, they just play in a spot that they shouldn’t and limits their chance on being successful. Chara and Seidenburg will be back but they play 3 and 4, Mcquaid should be #6, I hear people say Krug has top 2 potential, personally I don’t see it. We blew the year in letting the Morrow and C. Miller develop now them 2 are no further ahead then when the season started especially Morrow; can’t blame anyone I guess when your trying to get in and also playing for your job. Last season I wanted Boston to keep Jones and trade Rask. Still think Rask needs to go $7m way too much, I know he has a ntc, but he could be convince to waive for a team like St.L with all that said and done, Thanks CJ for the cup and playoffs and good luck with your new team. Welcome Bob Hartley if Calgary decides to part ways.
you give any coach that defense and it will be a struggle. that was bostons biggest hurdle this yr and I agree caper rask didn’t steal many games
The home games was a huge issue… who does that fall on? Claude Julien should take a lot of the blame for that, not having your team ready to play at home whereas they’re a lot better on the road… doesn’t add up IMO. You’re absolutely correct with the Rask point (not stealing any games), same with bigbear, at $7m per year I don’t care what type of defense is in front of you, you’re paid to be an elite goalie in the NHL. There are games that you need to control and steal a few for your team to help right the ship, and he didn’t.
bigbear,
I agree that you give any coach that defense and you’re going to have issues but I still think as a coach you need to get as much out of your players as you can, there was likely some more they could’ve gotten out of that defense. It was atrocious I understand but still in that case it comes down to game planning and knowing what you have, different defensive looks or schemes, even altering your style to support a subpar defense… jobs that the coach needs to take control of. I don’t think that was done, I saw a lot of nights where this team focused (defense) at standing up on the blue line to make plays… they were burned far to many times. I’m not sure it was part of the game planning, style, or what they worked on in practice but with what you had for players they might’ve been better off playing a more “safe” approach defensive style with those guys instead of letting Chara wind up for huge shots and try to stand up on the point only to have the puck jump your stick or the winger tap a puck around you and off to the races. On the coach in my opinion.
I think it’s time for Julien to go. However, I believe they need an established NHL coach. If, on the other hand, they decide to go in another direction, I believe Butch Cassidy will be the man. He’s done a good job in Providence, knows the young guys, and he’s likely ready to make the jump to the big time. Personally, I’d like to see them hire someone like Ralph Kruger or Ken Hitchcock (if the Blues make another early exit and they dump him).
Laurie,
If they do go the NHL established coach then I think management will look to find ways to piece the team together and stay playoff competitive. I’d like to see them commit to more of a long term rebuild than place bandaids on the team… in that case I’d like a younger up and coming coach who can grow with the team long term. Good points though Laurie, Cassidy wouldn’t be a bad option.
The blame for this should be squarely on sweeney the bruins defence is a complete joke beyonda thirty nine year old chara the entire defence is made up of at best number six and seven dmen , and even chara at this point is at best a decent number three or a good number four dman and that only if you manage his minutes well . Julien has them playing playoff caliber and style hockey throughout the season and by seasons end because of a lack of depth on the 3rd and 4th lines and throughout the defence the players are burnt out and are gassed at seasons end this will only get worse as bruins core players are aging fast .
I suspect that if the Boston Bruins choose to part ways with coach Claude Julien, their rivals, the Montreal Canadiens, will jump at the chance to reaquire him. Montreal’s coach, Michel Therrien, is on the hotseat, and most fans and media would like to see a change – especially since the Habs failed to make the playoffs in what is being called one of the worst seasons in team history. Boston Bruins’ management should take note before making a knee-jerk reaction.
Ivan_Mtl,
Just because another organization and even a rival would jump at the chance to re-acquire him doesn’t mean the Bruins management should the note and I doubt this would be a knee-jerk reaction. The team was solidified in a playoff position 2 seasons in a row for the majority of the season, and both times collapsed at the end of the season. The coach and the players are responsible. If Montreal wants him, they can have him… if he really wants to coach back up there then good for him and his family. Has nothing to do with his resume and tenure with the team, the team NEEDS to go in a different direction and support he youth and rebuilding. He just isn’t part of those plans.
LOL Ivan_Mtl, imagine for a moment CJ coaching your habs and with PK on defense, it would be a tug-of-war. Also don’t you think it would be a knee jerk reaction on the habs part to dump MT, with no Price for most of the season meant no chance.
Can you imagine CJ coaching Karlsson? Same answer.
Anyone who has followed the Oilers knows what Yak has had to put up with. While the other so called core players get a bi for a mistake , Yak gets to play with the 3rd line most of the season , like last season. Last night they bumped him up and he got two points and was one of the best players on the team. The kid needs a decent center, when they trade him, trust me he will light it up and it will go,down as one of the worst trades the Oilers have made in years, and they have made a few.
I agree lee I think yak will be a 20 goal scorer on a different team
I’m not certain Yakupov will ever be the player he was envisioned to be when drafted but I agree. With a fresh start & sometime to develop chemistry with a decent center in a top 6 roll I believe Yakupov can be at least a 20 goal 50 point winger.
This is a no win situation for Edmonton. Steve Tambellini & Kevin Lowe shouldn’t have gone astray & selected against the wishes of his scouting department. What’s done is done bite the bullet & move on.
With expansion looming it really clouds the picture. Does any team want to waste a protector spot on Yakupov?
I like Yakupov as well and always will. His biggest problem is he has no, or very little, hockey sense. He has all the skill, ability, work ethic, and attitude, but does not think too well when he is on the ice. The team that he would do really well on would be the Blackhawks. With a coach like Quenneville and a center like Toews he would have a lot of success imo.
Brutal to see Detroit having to be on the hook for Datsyuk’s contract next season. 7.5 million is a serious issue for them if unable to move his contract. Yes it isn’t actually paid & a team like Carolina, Arizona, Winnipeg or possibly even Buffalo could take it on but not for free. It will cost something. Several more than a decade ago NJ paid SJ a 1st to Take Malakhov off their hands after the 1st salary cap was instituted.
I’m not sure Buffalo will have the space this summe to do so after resigning Roisto, Girgensons, Foligno, Larsson, Deslauriers, McCabe, Casey & at least 1 top 1 UFA Dman.
I’m torn on this 1 as Detroit could block Datsyuk from ending his career in the KHL if they refused to release him from his contract. I don’t see that happening & I appreciate Datsyuk offering to help anyway he can but there is nothing he can do to get Detroit off the hook or compensate them for what they are going to have to pay another team to get this contract off the books.
Awful situation that leaves a bad taste in your mouth on what has been a stellar hall of fame career. Just unfortunate for all involved. Ideally Datsyuk would just finish the final year & move on.
Soory should read 1 top 4 Dman. I hate soft touch buttons.
Hmmmm…it’s one year. A contract they should be able to trade to a team trying to reach the cap floor.
I must give credit where credit is due, at the beginning of the season many on this site, said it would be a tough season for Boston with that defense and to your credit you were right; Boston didn’t address it and although they tied Detroit in point and had more wins, they find themselves on the outside looking in and this is solely on the defense.
Players and coach… down the stretch where they needed it most I feel your coach and leadership on the ice need to step up and motivate the team. I didn’t see that at all. You’re right, the defense is definitely a huge hole and to blame but what does that say about Tuukka Rask and his season…. since the defense has begun to diminish and gotten older Rask’s numbers have fallen considerably. He was Vezina caliber with a Norris defense in front of him, take away some talent or add some years to Chara and Seidenberg and what you have now is an average, middle of the league goaltender getting paid $7m per.
I don’t put it solely of the defense. As I stated repeatedly Boston is rebuilding. 1/2 the starting roster are 1st, 2nd or 3rd year players almost. I had Boston battling for a playoff spot this season but coming up short when all was said & done at the start of the year.
At the trade deadline I thought Boston was a lock & although I would have liked more than Stempniak & Liles I thought it would be enough to hold onto the final playoff spot in the Atlantic.
I don’t hold Julien directly responsible, nor the defense. There is enough blame to go around for everyone including the forwards, Neely, Sweeney & Rask, everyone, but I think the most important thing to recognize is Boston is rebuilding & as mentioned above a huge portion of the current roster are just kids.
I let Julien go not because he’s a bad coach but 2 years in a row giving up your playoff spot in the last game of the year this season; really they have floundered since the trade deadline on March 2nd, & the last 3 games of the year last season warrants it.
You can’t let everyone go. Start with the coach, sign Yandle or similar, trading for 1 if able, move a few other pieces around, continue the rebuild & take progressive steps forward transitioning out some of the veterans.
Great points Striker, we’re very much on a similar page. Julien goes not because he’s a bad coach, he’s a great coach but I think the team is at a point where it needs some bigger changes… Yandle would be a good signing.
i don’t think yandle is the dman the bruins need he is more offensive the bruins can score they need to keep the puck out of the net
bigbear,
I feel he would be a good signing especially after trading Hamilton. You’re right though he’s not the type of defenseman that would help with the goals against but if they’re thinking about a replacement and Hamilton type then he’d be a good option.
On a side note: I’ve had a lot of people (not necessarily on here) continue to dwell on the past with the Dougie Hamilton trade; lack of return, loss in production… Some actual Bruins writers that follow the team have even gone so far to say that he was a big reason why this team is where they’re at (not in the playoffs). Some even point out that he had a career year in Calgary… yes his 43 points (eclipsed his 42 last season, a fantastic feat on the surface until you notice he was 2nd to worst on the team in +/- with a -14… was the worst in +/- out of all defenseman and the next closest was Dennis Wideman with a -9. For the purpose of debating and comparison, Torey Krug had a career year with 44 points (1 more than Hamilton) and did it with a +9 on a team who many felt had one of the absolute worse defense core in the league, coupled with Tuukka Rask’s arguably worst season since taking over the starting job… Dougie Hamilton is going to be a great defenseman but he is in no way shape or form considered to be an elite level defenseman and I doubt (will stand corrected when the day comes) that he moves into that type of discussion or Norris Trophy candidate. I’m not supporting the trade return but this is an example of a player simply choosing to move on to another team for different reasons besides money… the Bruins received a 1st, and two 2nd’s for him… some say they should’ve let it come to an offer sheet… yes because the compensation breakdown for $5.4-$7.3m per is a 1st, 2nd, and a 3rd round pick so that route would have OBVIOUSLY netted a worse return. I apologize for the rant but with all of the fallout from missing the playoffs, and subsequent fallout coming (even likely tomorrow Monday), I’ve heard far too many fans say that it’s because they let Hamilton go, or Hamilton woulda, coulda, yada yada, horrible return… the arguments go on. It was not the best trade, understood, but it also could have been a lot worse… the player didn’t want to play in Boston whether because of the coach, players, locker room atmosphere, so be it. He would be nice to have still but he wasn’t responsible in his own end… Krug has posted a +18 (first year), +13 (second year), and a +9 (this season) all while putting up a mere 30 goals and 93 assists in 3 seasons of play. You can put up points as a defenseman and still play good defense..
Striker
Disagree the offense played great one of the leading goal scoring teams. Also had 3,30 plus goal Scorers. The problem was the defense 100 percent. Chara has looked bad since the 2012 finals,Siedenberg hasn’t been himself since his knee surgery,Maquaid is a warrior but not a top defenseman,Krug is small and can’t hit the net, K.Miller played ok but way too many turnovers. Trotman,Morrow and C.Miller just aren’t ready. Defense makes goalies look good and this defense gave Rask no support. Maybe it’s the system they changed too where the forwards weren’t helping as much in the defensive zone. Either way Chara and Siedenberg need to go.
What are you hearing about the possibilty that MB will fire the over matched Therien…..and if so will they take a shot at Julien ??
A recent report by TSN’s Darren Dreger claims Bergevin will announce sometime this week that Therien will return, citing the high number of injuries that hampered the club this season.
The last I heard MB is expected to announce on Monday that Therien is back. Personally if Julien is available I want him as coach. The more I thought about it the comment earlier i the year by MB that Galchenyuk might never be a top center actually came from Therien’s lips and MB was just repeating it. With all the struggles why was the EGG line never re-united? He is not good with young players but the Habs want to build through the draft. I get that MB is still a rookie GM but he will never be matured until he fires a coach and gets that road block out of his system (not getting to attached to people and pitting the team first)
There are so many reasons to part ways with MT.
The injuries / Carey Price are one thing.
If you have watched Therrien “coach”, even when the team was winning,many of his issues should be evident.
The fact is that yes – he can coach at this level, but he is low average.
We need better than that.
I believe Julien will have plenty of options and I question whether he will so eagerly take over the reins in Ottawa. Fired for not getting the Bruins to the playoffs, will he take over, arguably, a weaker team in Ottawa that also expects nothing less than a playoff spot? Factor in that Ottawa has budget constraints and some uncertainty over their future ownership. Not to mention, of course, that there’s been a bit of a revolving door at the coaches position. All of this might give him pause for thought.
Anyone think Julian would join Chiarelli in Edmonton. Those young guys could learn how to play a two way game and get them on the right track.
I think Todd is safe but I do agree Julien would be a better fit.