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Poll: Which Head Coach Has The Hottest Seat Entering 2019-20?

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Every game has a winner and a loser and not every team can meet or exceed expectations each year. Even entering a new season in which every team has a clean slate, it’s not incorrect to state that some NHL teams will struggle in 2019-20. And when that happens, the head coach is usually the first one to go. There are 31 head coaches in the league and one of them will inevitably be the first one fired this season. Who has the best chance of earning that unfortunate title?

Several names can likely be ruled out immediately – although anything can happen. Anaheim’s Dallas Eakins, Buffalo’s Ralph Krueger, Edmonton’s Dave Tippett, Florida’s Joel Quenneville, L.A.’s Todd McClellan, Ottawa’s D.J. Smith, and Philadelphia’s Alain Vigneault are all beginning their first season with a new team. In most cases, that affords them at least one year of job security before their seat can start warming up. However, in the event of a massive collapse or poor locker room dynamics, it’s not unheard of in hockey for a coach to be one and done.

It was a strong season for rookie head coaches last year though. Calgary’s Bill Peters, Carolina’s Rod Brind’Amour, Chicago’s Jeremy Colliton, Dallas’ Jim Montgomery, Washington’s Todd Reirden, and of course, reigning Jack Adams Award-winner Barry Trotz of the New York Islanders all excelled in their first year on the job. It’s hard to imagine any of the group having a hot seat, barring a major disappointment against expectations. The New York Rangers’ David Quinn had a much tougher task for a team that internally had an eye on moving assets and developing young players, but the former top college coach will likely be given another year to work with a revamped lineup.

Other names whose seats are probably very cold: Stanley Cup combatants Craig Berube of the St. Louis Blues and Bruce Cassidy of the Boston Bruins. Both exceeded expectations last year and were rewarded with multi-year extensions in the off-season. Gerard Gallant, whose Golden Knights made a magical run to the Cup Final two years ago in their inaugural season, is likely safe as well.

Who does that leave as a candidate for the hottest of seats? Despite a record-breaking regular season, all eyes will be on Jon Cooper and the Lightning as they look to bounce back from a shocking first-round sweep. Cooper is the NHL’s longest-tenured head coach, but he could lose that mantle if Tampa Bay isn’t a top-ten team all season and at least an Eastern Conference finalist. Similarly, Toronto and Mike Babcock had a strong regular season, but again could not fight their way past Boston in the first round. Babcock may to avoid any regular season struggles to even get back to a likely postseason re-match with the Bruins, as many feel his seat has warmed considerably. John Tortorella got his franchise their first ever playoff series win last year, but the Blue Jackets watched a ton of talent walk away this summer and Tortorella faces the tough task of getting the team back to the postseason. Winnipeg’s Paul Maurice, the second-longest tenured coach behind Cooper, faces the same difficulty of leading a team whose Stanley Cup hopes have been shaken this summer. Jared Bednar’s Avalanche were a surprise in the playoffs as well, but moved in the opposite direction this off-season and are a popular dark horse pick to win it all this year. High expectations demand results and Bednar’s job could hang in the balance if Colorado cannot take a step forward this year. The Devils’ John Hynes is certainly under a lot of pressure as well, as New Jersey missed the playoffs – by a wide margin – last year and responded with arguably the most impressive off-season in the league. Many will expect the Devils not only to make the playoffs, but to be competitive. Other coaches whose teams need to take a step forward via playoff success are Nashville’s Peter Laviolette, San Jose’s Peter Deboer, and perhaps even Pittsburgh’s Mike Sullivan. Coaches whose jobs could depend on making the playoffs include Arizona’s Rick Tocchet, Minnesota’s Bruce Boudreau, and Montreal’s Claude Julien.

The two outliers of the group: the Red Wings’ Jeff Blashill and the Canucks’ Travis Green. Neither team is expected to be a legitimate playoff contender, but at the same time both men need to show a marked improvement in their teams. Blashill has been in Detroit for four years but has little to show for it. Green enters his third season in Vancouver having fallen short of ownership and management’s lofty expectations in the previous two. It’s hard to set benchmarks for what would either save or end both coaches’ jobs.

All 31 coaches have a seat to start the year. Whose is hottest and in the most danger of being lost before the others?

Mobile users, click here to vote.

Dallas Add John Stevens To Coaching Staff

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July 1: With Stevens’ contract expiring with the Kings, the Stars have officially added him to their staff.

June 11: The Dallas Stars and head coach Jim Montgomery are making a major addition, and free agency hasn’t even started. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that Dallas is set to hire former Los Angeles Kings and Philadelphia Flyers head coach John Stevens as an assistant on Montgomery’s staff. Stevens was considered one of the top available coaches this off-season and will be a major addition for the Stars.

It should not come as much of a surprise that Montgomery and Stevens are back together. As Friedman notes, the pair have a considerable shared history. Both Montgomery and Stevens played together on the AHL’s Philadelphia Phantoms in the late 90’s during what would be the final years of Stevens’ playing career due to a career-ending injury. Stevens would then become an assistant coach during Montgomery’s final year with the team. As Montgomery himself later transitioned into coaching, he led the USHL’s Dubuque Fighting Saints as head coach and general manager for several years, during which time he would recruit and coach John Stevens Jr., who currently plays for the AHL’s Bridgeport Sound Tigers. Of course, the two friends also coached against each other early this past season as well, as Montgomery’s Stars defeated Stevens’ Kings 4-2 in late October in one of Stevens’ final games at the helm.

Stevens’ stint as the head coach in L.A. was arguably cut short too early. In his first full season of duty in 2017-18, the Kings went 45-29-8 and made the playoffs, before a disappointing sweep by the Vegas Golden Knights in the first round. The team then started last season off 4-8-1, after which Stevens was fired and replaced with Willie Desjardins, who himself has now been replaced by Todd McLellan. Stevens still maintained a winning record as head coach of the Kings and holds the same distinction as an NHL head coach overall, despite finishing just below .500 in aggregate over parts of four seasons as the head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers from 2006 to 2010. Stevens has a strong grasp on defense and has often led teams that play a safe, conservative game, even if that doesn’t always lead to the offense needed to win games. Combined with Mongtomery’s eye for offense and the Stars’ substantial talent, Stevens has the chance to be a major difference-maker in Dallas and it is not a stretch to say he could be an NHL head coach again someday if things go well in this next stop.

Coaching Notes: Playfair, Barnes, Schubert

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The Edmonton Oilers have hired an associate coach to join Dave Tippett’s staff, bringing Jim Playfair on board. The former defenseman was actually a first-round selection of the Oilers back in 1982, but ended up playing just two of his 21 career NHL games with the organization. After his retirement as a player in 1992, Playfair jumped into the coaching ranks and found success in the ECHL, AHL and NHL. He last worked in the league under Tippett in Arizona in 2016-17.

More coaching notes:

  • The Dallas Stars have not renewed the contract of Stu Barnes according to Sean Shapiro of The Athletic. Barnes will not be part of the coaching staff next season, after serving as an assistant the last two seasons. Barnes had a long career in the NHL including several years with the Stars, and has two different stints coaching for the team. It’s unclear whether head coach Jim Montgomery will bring someone else in, after recently adding John Stevens to the staff.
  • Former NHL defenseman Christoph Schubert has announced his retirement, and will join the coaching ranks now that his playing career is over. The German Olympian was forced out due to a shoulder injury but had already become something of a player-coach with the Hamburg third division team. Schubert played more than 300 games in the NHL for the Ottawa Senators and Atlanta Thrashers, and was an international staple for Germany for many years.

Ottawa Senators To Interview Dallas Assistant Rick Bowness

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The Ottawa Senators continue their search for a head coach as the team has asked and received permission to interview Dallas Stars assistant coach and former Ottawa head coach Rick Bowness, according to TSN’s Bob McKenzie. He is the sixth coach to receive an interview with the Senators.

Bowness, the Senators first-ever head coach, coached Ottawa in between 1992 and 1995, finished his tenure with the Senators with a 39-178-18 record, although expectations weren’t as great back then considering that expansion franchises didn’t get the same advantages that the Vegas Golden Knights have received and soon-to-be Seattle franchise will receive. Bowness has been the head coach of several struggling franchises over the years, including coaching the original Winnipeg Jets, Boston Bruins, New York Islanders and Phoenix Coyotes, with an overall coaching record of 123-289-48 record. His last coaching gig was a 20-game stint with the Coyotes back in 2004 as the team’s interim coach after the team fired Bob Francis.

However, while his head coaching record may not be stellar, Bowness has made a name for himself as a top assistant coach, who helped the Vancouver Canucks in their glory years from 2006 to 2013, including one trip to the Stanley Cup Finals. He then moved over to work with Jon Cooper and the Tampa Bay Lightning for the next five years before joining the Jim Montgomery and the Dallas Stars last summer, helping the Stars reach the second-round of the playoffs this year.

Bowness, 64, will be the sixth coach interviewed as the Senators have already interviewed Marc Crawford, Troy Mann, Jacques Martin, D.J. Smith and Nate Leaman. McKenzie added that there is no hurry for Ottawa to hire a head coach as he could see the team waiting until the end of the month before hiring a coach.

Snapshots: Boychuk, Cizikas, Foligno, Bishop

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The New York Islanders could have gotten back defenseman Johnny Boychuk Saturday as the veteran defenseman was available to play, according to Newsday’s Andrew Gross. Boychuk appeared to hurt his shoulder when he took a hit from Philadelphia’s Jakub Voracek last week, but Islanders head coach Barry Trotz said that Boychuk could have played. However, with the defense having played so well against Montreal Thursday, Trotz elected to keep the same six on defense against Detroit. He could play Sunday, however.

The team could also get back Casey Cizikas on Sunday as well. The Islanders named him a late scratch after he suffered a lower-body injury in warmups before Saturday’s game. The 28-year-old, who is having a career year, was suffering from a stomach flu several weeks ago and still hasn’t recovered from it.

“I was expecting him to play,” Trotz said. “We’re at that point in the year where we have to make sure with our players. He’s been pretty worn out. He lost a lot of weight.”

  • The Columbus Blue Jackets announced that captain Nick Foligno did not travel with the team to Boston for their game today against Boston for personal reasons, but add that the personal reason doesn’t have anything to do with his daughter’s recent surgery. Foligno, who has 16 goals and 30 points this season, is expected to be back in the lineup soon. Foligno has missed some time this year due to the health of his now-five year-old daughter, who had to undergo a procedure in December/January. The Blue Jackets next play on Tuesday in Calgary.
  •  SportsDay’s Gerry Fraley writes that the Dallas Stars hope to have goaltender Ben Bishop back soon. The goaltender, who has been sidelined with a lower-body injury which he sustained Thursday at Minnesota, has been red-hot lately, having gone 230 minutes and 53 seconds without allowing a goal, a club record. Despite the fact that his injury improved the following day and had no difficulty walking out of the arena that night, the team opted to bench Bishop Friday against Vegas. However, the team hopes to get him back real soon as Dallas is currently on the outside looking in when it comes to making the playoffs. “I think he’s just being smart,” said Dallas head coach Jim Montgomery. “He’s trying to make sure it doesn’t become a two-week thing.”

 

Central Notes: Montgomery, Jokiharju, Myers, Staal

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Dallas Stars head coach Jim Montgomery was hoping for a more impressive performance Saturday against the St. Louis Blues. He spoke to the players about the importance of coming out strong against St. Louis in the second game with them in five games. Instead, the team didn’t come out at all and suffered a disappointing 3-1 loss, frustrating the head coach to no end as the team, according to NHL.com’s Mike Heika.

“It’s frustrating,” Montgomery said. “I’m very frustrated that I haven’t been able to gain consistency in our performance and I haven’t been able to change the culture of mediocrity.”

The team was already coming off a disappointing loss to the struggling Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday as the team looked uninterested throughout much of the game. The team hired Montgomery to turn the franchise around and develop a talented team into a constant playoff threat, but the team has been quite inconsistent despite being third in the Central Division with a 23-19-4 record for 50 points. Unfortunately, six teams are within five points of them in the Western Conference, so there is no guarantee that Dallas will even make the playoffs.

“There have been some times, after a horrible period, where it’s their room,” Montgomery said of finding ways to motivate the team. “’You guys need to bring it forth.’ Unfortunately, there have been too many times where we have to think about how to motivate these guys. That’s a problem in and of itself that we have had to do that so many times this year already.”

  • The Chicago Blackhawks, who continually are making adjustments on their defense, made a minor tweak to their defense Saturday night when the team moved right-handed defenseman Henri Jokiharju to the left side of the blueline, according to Jimmy Greenfield of the Chicago Tribune. The team hopes Jokiharju will make the conversion now because 2018 first-rounder Adam Boqvist is also a right-shot defenseman and would likely be more comfortable on the right. “I think he was pretty good (on the left),” head coach Jeremy Colliton said. “He looked comfortable to me, made some plays, defended pretty well. So that’s a positive.”
  • Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Sun reports that Winnipeg Jets head coach Paul Maurice said that if defenseman Tyler Myers continues his progress, the veteran defenseman could be an option to return to the lineup Tuesday against Vegas. Myers missed Friday’s game against Detroit with a lower-body injury and is not expected to play tonight against Anaheim. The 6-foot-6 Myers is an instrumental figure in the team’s defense, especially while the team is without Dustin Byfuglien.
  • Mike Russo of The Athletic (subscription required) writes that if anyone is going to need a break when the all-star game hits, it will be the Minnesota Wild’s Eric Staal, who has really looked slow lately and is in one giant rut. The 34-year-old forward, who could end up being a potential trade candidate as the trade deadline nears, struggled throughout the game Saturday against Detroit and continues to commit multiple turnovers. He has just one goal in his past 13 games and has just 13 goals at the midway point in the season.

Central Notes: Hartman, Crawford, Davidson, Dickinson

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The Department of Player Safety announced they have fined Nashville Predators forward Ryan Hartman $1,000 for spearing Boston Bruins’ Chris Wagner Saturday with less than a minute left in the second period.

Hartman has been in trouble with the Department of Safety before as he was suspended for one game on Apr. 19 for an illegal check to the head against Colorado’s Carl Soderberg and then was fined for $2,320 for slashing Brayden McNabb in Oct. of 2017 against Vegas.

  • The Chicago Blackhawks may get a better idea today of where starting goaltender Corey Crawford is at after he sustained another concussion on Dec. 16. According to NBC Sports’ Charlie Roumeloitis, head coach Jeremy Colliton confirmed this morning that Crawford was in the building, but still hadn’t talked to the coach. “As far as I know he’s still in the protocol. He is here, so that’s a positive,” Colliton said. Crawford missed quite a bit of time when he suffered a concussion last year in December as he still wasn’t ready to return at the start of this season. The team hopes Crawford can return much earlier this time.
  • John Dietz of the Daily Herald reports that defenseman Brandon Davidson says that he should be ready to return to the Blackhawks lineup in 7-10 days. The blueliner underwent surgery on Nov. 27 on his right knee and was expected to be out for six to eight weeks, which suggests he could be ready at the six-week mark. The 27-year-old has only appeared in seven games for Chicago this year.
  • The Dallas Stars may have lost one of their own Saturday when forward Jason Dickinson was forced out of the second period of Dallas’ game against Minnesota with an upper-body injury, according to NHL.com’s Mark Stepneski. Head coach Jim Montgomery said that Dickinson was doubtful for their game today against the Islanders. The 23-year-old has been a mainstay for Dallas on the bottom-six as he has five goals and 11 points in 34 games.

 

Central Notes: Klingberg, Koivu, Morrissey, Kayumov

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While many people may not have noticed as much with the impressive play of rookie Miro Heiskanen, the Dallas Stars have been missing their top defenseman John Klingberg for an entire month after suffering a hand injury. The team’s top defenseman, however, is closing on a return and is expected to be back somewhere around Christmas, according to NHL.com’s Mark Stepneski.

“The latest we would think would be Dec. 27, the game after Christmas,” Stars coach Jim Montgomery said earlier this week. “But he might be right before Christmas.”

Klingberg has already missed 13 games and is not expected to join the team for their upcoming four-game road trip starting on Sunday. However, the 26-year-old hopes to begin practicing with the team when they return from that road trip. While his hand has been improving, he still has trouble of doing specific things with his hand, which includes tying his skates. However, he has gotten clearance to do more with his hand.

“It’s been tough because I haven’t been able to lift anything with this hand,” Klingberg said. “I saw the hand doctor [Thursday], and they said they you are good to go and try as much as you can and no sharp pains. So, I am going to grab a stick next week and when the guys come back home we will see where I am.”

  • Sarah MacLellan of the StarTribune writes that with Minnesota Wild Mikko Koivu returning to Minnesota to get his lower-body injury looked at, the team hopes that other players might step up with more minutes available. Koivu led all forwards this season in ATOI with 18:32. That could mean more minutes for guys like Charlie Coyle and Nino Niederreiter as well as youngsters Joel Eriksson Ek and Jordan Greenway. “Mikko’s obviously a huge part of our team,” goalie Devan Dubnyk said. “He’s irreplaceable, but that’s a good opportunity for people to fill some different roles and get some more ice time. When we’re winning, we’re winning because we’re deep and everyone’s chipping in. That doesn’t change when somebody goes down.”
  • While sitting out for the last week, Winnipeg Jets’ Josh Morrissey has been doing nothing but studying film in his off time, according to Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Sun. Morrissey has watched more than a dozen NHL games, including some of his own to see what’s missing from his game, while keeping an eye on future opponents. In the meantime, the defenseman has passed all of his tests, while recovering from a lower-body injury, and hopes to return to the Winnipeg lineup on Sunday.
  • While the Chicago Blackhawks have liked what they see on the ice from 2016 second-round prospect Artur Kayumov so far in his early career, the 20-year-old picked up some negative publicity recently as the KHL announced that Kayumov has been suspended for 13 games after a hit to the head to Jokerit’s Jesper Jensen as well as punching a referee in the process. Kayumov, playing currently for Yaroslavl Lokomotiv, has 11 points and 55 penalty minutes this season.

 

Injury Notes: Lehner, Morrissey, Hanzal

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When the New York Islanders recalled goalie Christopher Gibson earlier today and Robin Lehner was not present at morning skate, there was understandable injury concern about the keeper. Newsday’s Andrew Gross reports that Lehner is in fact sidelined with injury, but not headed to the injured reserve. Gross spoke with Islanders head coach Barry Trotz, who would only confirm that Lehner has a “tweak” of some kind and is unavailable. Trotz did add that the injury is unrelated to Lehner’s chronic back spasms and instead a separate minor injury that occurred recently. Gross writes that the team is content to carry three goalies for now in hopes that Lehner is ready to return sooner rather than later. The free agent addition was expected to push for the starter’s role for New York, but instead has been outplayed by incumbent Thomas Greiss, who is off to a hot start. This injury is another setback to Lehner’s pursuit of the starting job, but he could returned refreshed and ready to contribute more to the tandem. Lehner has posted a .913 save percentage and 2.79 GAA this year compared to Greiss’ .926 save percentage and 2.42 GAA in four more appearances.

  • The Islanders’ competition tonight, the Winnipeg Jets, made a last-minute change to their lineup, subbing out workhorse defenseman Josh Morrissey. Morrissey was reportedly unable to suit up due to a lower-body injury, which is something to look out for moving forward. Morrissey leads all Jets skaters in total ice time this season, averaging close to 23 minute per night in all 26 games. In fact, tonight’s absence is Morrissey’s first due to injury in his entire three-year NHL career. Morrissey missed one late-regular season contest last year, rested before the playoffs, and missed one postseason game due to a suspension, but otherwise has been in the lineup for 205 of Winnipeg’s past 207 games. The team relies heavily on Morrissey’s dependable presence on the back end and any long-term absence for the two-way defenseman would be a major loss for the team.
  • On the other end of the spectrum is Dallas Stars forward Martin Hanzal. Since signing with the team in the 2017 off-season, Hanzal has missed 72 of a possible 110 games and counting with a serious back injury that required spinal fusion surgery. Some felt that Hanzal may never play the game again, but the team and player have been optimistic throughout the recovery process. Now, The Dallas News’ Matthew DeFranks reports that a comeback is imminent. Hanzal has been practicing with the team for some time, but there had been no word on whether he would be given the go-ahead for game action. Head coach Jim Montgomery told DeFranks that the status quo has changed, as Hanzal has been cleared to play and could return as early as Friday, when the Stars take on the San Jose Sharks.  Dallas has some roster management to do with Hanzal and his $4.75MM cap hit coming back, but he will be a welcome addition to the lineup if truly back at full strength. A hulking two-way power forward, Hanzal has consistently produced in the 30-40 point range throughout his career and would be a major boost in all areas of the game for the Stars.

Western Notes: Davidson, Puljujarvi, Honka, Hanzal

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The Chicago Blackhawks placed veteran Brandon Davidson on injured reserve on Nov. 16 with little description other than a lower-body injury. Today, more than a week later, the Blackhawks announced that Davidson will undergo surgery on Tuesday for his right knee. No timetable will be announced until after the procedure.

Davidson signed a one-year, $650K deal with Chicago on Sept. 27, but has appeared in only seven games this year. With the development of some of their younger players such as Henri Jokiharju and Gustav Forsling finding their way into the lineup, Davidson has had trouble cracking the lineup. He had similar trouble last year, but still managed to appear in 51 games, albeit with three different teams. That included raising his stock while in Edmonton that allowed them to trade him to the New York Islanders for a 2019 third-rounder.

  • There was some surprise earlier today when the Edmonton Oilers recalled struggling forward Jesse Puljujarvi from Bakersfield of the AHL after just four games. However, the Oilers’ new head coach Ken Hitchcock accepted responsibility as he wants to further Puljujarvi’s development himself. “I wanted responsibility for his development,” Hitchcock said (via Oilers’ Jack Michaels). “I didn’t just want to be watching him play in AHL. I feel this is type of player we need to win in the Western Confernce. I asked (general manager Peter Chiarelli) if he’d bring him up for practice today.”
  • The Dallas Stars hoped this would be the year that defenseman Julius Honka might break out and develop into that top-four defenseman they’ve been waiting for. That didn’t happen. Then when John Klingberg went down, the team hoped that Honka would take that next step in replacing him. So far that doesn’t look to be happening either after sitting out as a healthy scratch Friday and seems to have been a healthy scratch often for AHL callups. So far Honka has just three assists in 18 games and isn’t the offensive force many felt that he would become, writes The Athletic’s Sean Shapiro (subscription required). “We’d like to see more consistency,” head coach Jim Montgomery said Friday. “Reading rushes defensively, puck pressure down low, gets caught watching, and he’s not the only one.”
  • SportsDay’s Mike Heika reports that injured forward Martin Hanzal intends to travel with the team for their upcoming road trip, but the veteran is still a couple weeks away from returning. The 31-year-old, who signed a three-year, $14.25MM deal last summer has played in just 38 games so far and hasn’t played at all this year after undergoing spinal fusion surgery in June.

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