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Todd McLellan

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?

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Kings Hire Trent Yawney As Assistant Coach

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New Los Angeles Kings head coach Todd McLellan has put the finishing touches on his coaching staff. After opting to retain veteran goalie coach Bill Ranford and up-and-coming coach Marco Sturm, McLellan still needed to add a defensive mind and found one in former colleague Trent Yawney. The Kings have announced that Yawney will join McLellan’s staff as the final assistant coach.

Yawney, 53, just wrapped up a stint as an assistant with the Edmonton Oilers, a hire made by McLellan before he was fired. Prior to that, Yawney served as an assistant with the Anaheim Ducks for four years. He also worked as an assistant for the San Jose Sharks from 2008 to 2011, again under McLellan. Yawney has also spent several years as an AHL head coach. However, what many may recognize Yawney for his playing career, spent mostly with the Chicago Blackhawks, and his brief stint as the head coach of the team from 2005 to 2007, when he was replaced mid-season by Denis Savard.

As the Kings’ release points out, Yawney has worked closely with a number of top defenses and elite defensemen, including Norris Trophy winners Chris Chelios, Doug Wilson, Phil Housley, Rob Blake, and Duncan Keith. In L.A., Yawney will have the opportunity to work with another elite talent in Drew Doughty, but also a deep group of young defensemen who are ready to break out with the right system and proper guidance. Yawney could prove to be a key figure in what the Kings’ hope is a return to relevance sooner rather than later.

Kings Notes: Leipsic, Brodzinski, Coaching Staff

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The Los Angeles Kings have started talks with Brendan Leipsic’s representatives, according to Jon Rosen of LA Kings Insider. The team would like to sign Leipsic if possible after he found his NHL footing in Los Angeles following a waiver claim in early December. The 25-year old forward scored 18 points in 45 games for the Kings, more tha he had for any one team previously.

Leipsic was originally selected in the third round by the Nashville Predators, but has already been involved in two trades and was picked by the Vegas Golden Knights in the expansion draft. That kind of turmoil is rarely productive for an NHL career, something a new contract with Los Angeles could fix. Obviously the Kings have lots of work to do this summer in order to try and get younger and faster, but Leipsic has apparently done enough to impress the front office in his short tenure.

  • Jonny Brodzinski however looks like he’ll be heading for a fresh start elsewhere. The 25-year old forward qualifies for Group VI unrestricted free agency this summer and GM Rob Blake told Curtis Zupke of the Los Angeles Times that Brodzinski will make it to the open market. Blake did explain that he expects to sign a “majority” of the team’s restricted free agents however, which include names like Leipsic, Alex Iafallo and Adrian Kempe. Brodzinski ended up playing just 54 games for the Kings over the last three seasons, and wasn’t able to translate his powerful shot and minor league scoring ability into much production at the NHL level.
  • Blake told Rosen that the team will have just two assistant coaches this season, including Marco Sturm who will stay on with the club. Rosen expects the other coaching hire to be Trent Yawney who worked with head coach Todd McLellan in Edmonton last season, but notes that there have been other interviews. The Kings handed McLellan a five-year, $25MM deal to turn things around in Los Angeles and will need to surround him by the best coaching staff possible if a return to the playoffs is in the cards.

Edmonton Oilers Extend AHL Coach Jay Woodcroft

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Though there have been many changes since Ken Holland took over as Edmonton Oilers GM, one won’t be happening behind the minor league bench. The organization announced today that Jay Woodcroft has signed a three-year extension to remain head coach of the Bakersfield Condors.

Woodcroft took the Condors to a level that they had never seen before, setting a franchise record with 42 wins and getting to the Calder Cup playoffs for the first time. The group also completed an incredible 17-game winning streak in early 2019, tying the second longest streak in AHL history. Despite a long career as an assistant in the NHL, this was Woodcroft’s first head coaching job at the professional level.

Holland is familiar with Woodcroft from his days in Detroit, where he started his coaching career as a video assistant after retiring as a player in 2005. Todd McLellan was on that staff, and is someone Woodcroft has basically followed around the league since, spending more than a decade as his assistant in San Jose and Edmonton. That led to some speculation that he might be heading to Los Angeles to rejoin him, but after experiencing so much success with the Condors and being a positive influence on the development of Edmonton’s young players, it makes sense for Holland and the Oilers to keep him around.

Los Angeles Kings Contemplating Buying Out Dion Phaneuf

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With a rebuild on the horizon, the Los Angeles Kings must find a way to open up roster space as well as salary cap room to take their next step under new head coach Todd McLellan. One potential contract that has come under scrutiny recently is that of Dion Phaneuf. In fact, Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos said late Saturday night that the Kings are considering buying out the veteran defenseman:

Other options that the L.A. Kings have is buying out Dion Phaneuf. He’s got two years left at $12 million. That would get him $8 million over the next four years and a chance to get back into unrestricted free agency on July 1.

Phaneuf signed a seven-year, $49MM contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2013, but the 34-year-old saw his play take a huge drop this season as he played in 67 games with just one goal and six points for the year. He received the first healthy scratch of his career in February and saw his ATOI drop from almost 20 minutes per game to 15. At $7MM per year for another two years, the team might be ready to move on from the veteran. While the team would see significant cap relief this year with a buyout as their cap hit would only be $2.92MM, the team would still have a considerable hit at $5.42MM next season as well as a $1.42MM in both 2021-22 and 2022-23.

The Kings have a number of veterans on their blue line, including Drew Doughty, Alec Martinez and Derek Forbort, although there has been talk that L.A. may opt to move Martinez as he is likely the team’s top trade chip if they want to upgrade their team. On top of that, the Kings may be ready to give some of its younger players more significant minutes this coming season. The team has a number of interesting players who could be ready, including Sean Walker, Paul Ladue, Kurtis MacDermid, Matt Roy, Kale Clague, former college stars Daniel Brickley and Michael Anderson, as well as recently acquired Sean Durzi, who dominated at the Memorial Cup last week.

 

 

Toronto, Los Angeles Discussed Patrick Marleau Trade

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Even while the Stanley Cup Final is still happening, this time of year brings plenty of interesting trade speculation. Today, Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic tweeted that the Toronto Maple Leafs and Los Angeles Kings have discussed a potential Patrick Marleau trade, though they haven’t been able to find a fit yet. Marleau has a full no-movement clause and can decide his future, though LeBrun points out the connection he has to new Kings head coach Todd McLellan from their days in San Jose.

Marleau, 39, saw his production decline severely this season, posting his lowest goal total since he was an 18-year old rookie in 1997-98. Those 16 tallies and 37 points were a disappointing result for the legendary forward, who continued his iron man streak and has now completed ten straight seasons without missing a game. Still, he is looked to as an important leader for the Maple Leafs and has been leaned on by head coach Mike Babcock in important situations. His defensive responsibility is still there, and the Maple Leafs have even used him at center sporadically when necessary.

Even with all that however, a trip to the west coast certainly wouldn’t be about improving the Kings roster for next season. Los Angeles is in the early stages of a rebuild, and would likely only entertain the idea of a Marleau trade if it meant they could either rid themselves of a bad contract or acquire some additional assets. The veteran forward has just one year remaining on his contract and is owed just $1.25MM after his signing bonus is paid out on July 1, but still carries a $6.25MM cap hit for the 2019-20 season. That’s exactly the reason the Maple Leafs are exploring a trade, given their impending cap crunch.

The Kings and Maple Leafs have been trading partners recently, as the two hooked up on a swap revolving around Jake Muzzin earlier this season. That saw Toronto hand over their first-round pick along with two highly touted prospects, helping along the Los Angeles rebuild. Perhaps there is more to be discussed, but we’ll have to wait to see if Marleau is even willing to waive his no-movement clause at all.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Snapshots: Draft Rankings, Kovalchuk, NWHL

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The 2019 NHL Entry Draft is just over a month away, but the next few weeks could still determine the top few selections. Kaapo Kakko and Jack Hughes are set to battle head to head at the upcoming IIHF World Championship while playing with other NHL stars and their individual performances could determine the final outcome of June’s draft. It’s unsurprising then that Hughes and Kakko continue to lead Sam Cosentino of Sportsnet’s draft rankings, but it’s not like they’re the only ones still playing important hockey.

Bowen Byram, ranked third on Cosentino’s list, is currently leading the WHL playoffs with 23 points in 18 games and has a chance to even the championship series against Prince Albert tonight. Byram recorded 71 points in 67 games this season, and is the top defenseman available in this year’s draft. His placement at third is an interesting one though, as the Chicago Blackhawks who own the selection have drafted defensemen with their first two picks in each of the past two years—Adam Boqvist and Nicolas Beaudin in 2018, and Henri Jokiharju and Ian Mitchell in 2017. If the Blackhawks decide not to pick another blue liner they’ll have a few names to choose from, as prospects 4-10 on the list all skate up front.

  • Speaking with reporters including Igor Eronko of Sport-Express while working with the Russian national team, Ilya Kovalchuk explained that he is still motivated to play for the Los Angeles Kings and has reached out to some former players who spent time under head coach Todd McLellan. Kovalchuk clearly did not find the good graces of Willie Desjardins last season and ended the year with just 34 points while seeing fewer than 16 minutes of ice time in nearly half of his 64 games. The 36-year old winger has two years remaining on his $18.75MM deal signed last summer.
  • The NWHL is desperately trying to stay afloat after more than 200 of the best women hockey players in the world announced a boycott last week, but they’ll have to do it without the help of Kim Pegula, co-owner of the Buffalo Sabres. The Buffalo Beauts were the only team in the NWHL that shared ownership with an NHL franchise, but will now be operated by the league after Pegula announced that the relationship will be severed. As Hailey Salvian and Katie Strang of The Athletic (subscription required) write, the Beauts were the “gold standard” of the NWHL, mostly because of their relationship with the Sabres and access to resources other teams did not have.

Snapshots: Kings, Checkers, Hornqvist

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In 2017-18, the Los Angeles Kings finished with 98 points, were a playoff team and had both a Norris Trophy and Hart Trophy finalist (and Selke winner) on their roster. Dustin Brown had found his edge again and recorded a 60-point season, while Jonathan Quick took home the Jennings Trophy as the goaltender for the team with the lowest goals against average in the NHL. Then, it all came crashing down. The club finished 30th in the NHL in 2018-19, fired their coach and traded away several assets. Things looked grim.

As Todd McLellan comes in to try and turn the team around, he spoke with Mark Spector of Sportsnet and was clear that it won’t be a quick process. The Kings aren’t expecting to be back competing for the Stanley Cup next season, and are just “at the beginning of the process.” The question now becomes what happens with the other veteran assets on Los Angeles, as names like Brown, Quick, Anze Kopitar, Drew Doughty and Jeff Carter aren’t getting any younger. If “it’s not going to be an overnight thing” as McLellan says, where does that leave the aging stars?

  • The Charlotte Checkers will be without two key defenders for their next game, as both Trevor Carrick and Bobby Sanguinetti have been given suspensions. While Sanguinetti will serve just a single game for a check to the head, Carrick is out for three games after leaving the bench to join an on-ice altercation. The Checkers are tied 1-1 in their first-round series against the Providence Bruins, and will need to find a way to win without two of their veteran blue liners.
  • Patric Hornqvist will suit up for Sweden at the upcoming IIHF World Championship, continuing his season after a disappointing exit with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Hornqvist joins a squad that needed some help up front, and could very well find himself skating beside rookie sensation Elias Pettersson. The 32-year old winger won a gold medal with Sweden last year, scoring two goals in five games. Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that teammate Marcus Pettersson will be an alternate for the Swedish squad.

Los Angeles Kings Hire Todd McLellan

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Wednesday: At a press conference to introduce McLellan as coach, the the team announced that assistant coach Dave Lowry will not be part of the staff in 2018-19. The Kings have also agreed to buy out the remainder of McLellan’s contract with Edmonton, which according to Curtis Zupke of the Los Angeles Times was worth $3MM. Bill Ranford and Marco Sturm are expected to stay on as part of the coaching staff.

Tuesday: The Todd McLellan sweepstakes have finally come to an end, and the Los Angeles Kings will be his next employer after all. The team has announced a multi-year contract for the former Edmonton Oilers head coach. McLellan was rumored to be a candidate for the Buffalo Sabres coaching job until he was ruled out last week, and has been linked to the Kings for some time. The deal is expected to be five years in length and worth around $25MM (including bonuses) according to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic. That makes McLellan one of the more expensive coaches in the league and rivals the deal that the Philadelphia Flyers recently gave to Alain Vigneault.

The Kings fired John Stevens just 13 games into the 2018-19 season and replaced him with Willie Desjardins, but found no change in results. The team struggled right out of the gate and ended up finishing with the second worst record in the entire league. That failure had a lot to do with goal scoring, as the Kings were one of only two teams (with the Anaheim Ducks being the other) to record fewer than 200 goals on the season. McLellan will be asked to turn things around in a hurry, given their long expensive commitments to players Anze Kopitar, Drew Doughty and Jonathan Quick.

McLellan does bring with him quite the resume of regular season success, despite things not ending well in Edmonton. Fired after 20 games this season, he had previously taken the Oilers and San Jose Sharks to the playoffs in seven of his ten years as an NHL head coach. In fact, his .637 winning percentage in San Jose put him among the best to have ever stood behind an NHL bench and had many expecting great things. Unfortunately, the Sharks were never able to get very deep in the playoffs with McLellan running things and he was let go after the 2014-15 season. The team would reach the Stanley Cup Final the following year.

In Edmonton there was always immense pressure, as McLellan inherited a team that was led by Connor McDavid and was expected to compete for the Stanley Cup. After an injury took McDavid off the ice for much of McLellan’s first season, he failed to make the playoffs and watched as Taylor Hall was jettisoned that summer. Despite losing his top scorer from 2015-16—who would go on to win a Hart Trophy in his second season in New Jersey—McLellan coached a healthy McDavid-led squad to the playoffs in 2017, finishing with 103 points, the club’s best total since 1987. That success, however, was short-lived.

Another playoff miss last season and a tough start to this year caused the Oilers to move on and bring in Ken Hitchcock to try and fix things, while McLellan watched from the sideline still under contract with the team. He’ll now get a brand new challenge in Los Angeles that will be difficult to master. The team’s core that brought them such success in the past has aged and cannot be relied upon to get them back to the playoffs by themselves, meaning other changes will need to occur. The team already started that process when they moved Jake Muzzin and Tanner Pearson, but could very well continue it this summer with other drastic moves.

At any rate, the Kings have found the man to try and lead them out of their recent struggles and shown full confidence in his ability. McLellan will be handsomely compensated as he looks to bring a championship to his third Pacific Division team.

Todd McLellan No Longer In Consideration For Buffalo Sabres

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The Buffalo Sabres conducted interviews with Todd McLellan this week as the coach was in town for the Frozen Four, but will not be hiring him to be their next head coach. Bob McKenzie of TSN reports that McLellan is no longer in consideration for the position and that the team never did formalize an offer for him. Instead, McLellan is expected to be hired by the Los Angeles Kings, though that has not been formally announced either. The Sabres will continue their search for a new head coach.

If McLellan does end up with Los Angeles, it would be his third Pacific Division team in five years after previously coaching with the San Jose Sharks and Edmonton Oilers. The Kings are looking for a coach to help turn around their franchise after a dreadful season, and informed interim coach Willie Desjardins that he would not be getting the job. The 51-year old McLellan was fired by Edmonton after going 9-10-1 through the first 20 games of this season, but has an overall coaching record of 434-282-90.

The Sabres meanwhile are looking to replace Phil Housley after just two seasons on the job. The Hall of Fame defenseman was considered an outstanding assistant coach with the Nashville Predators but failed to put together much success in his time in Buffalo. The Sabres rode a winning streak all the way to first place in the NHL early in the 2018-19 season, but ended up with an overall record of 33-39-10, a huge disappointment for GM Jason Botterill and his staff.

While Buffalo hasn’t had much success over the last several years, there are definitely parts of the roster that should appeal to any prospective head coach. Captain Jack Eichel set a career high with 82 points in 77 games this season while first-overall pick Rasmus Dahlin was as advertised and stepped into a top-pairing role almost immediately. The 18-year old defenseman—he’ll turn 19 tomorrow—recorded 44 points in 82 games while logging more than 21 minutes a night and should be in consideration for the Calder Trophy.

Still, there will be immense pressure on whoever the Sabres do bring in to replace Housley as the team hasn’t experienced a winning season since 2011-12 and hasn’t made the playoffs since 2010-11.

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