By Alex
When the Pittsburgh Penguins fired coach Michel Therrien earlier this week, many things went through my air headed mind. One, blood naturally continued to flow to my brittle brain. Two, I really need to brush up on my French-Quebecois slang.
I also fluttered and flirted with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Why? The Steelers bruised and banged me into thinking about their remarkable coaching stability and legacy that’s why. Not too many sports franchises I can think of have had just three coaches since 1969. Just as stunning, each of whom have won a title.
Contrast this with the Penguins who will have their fifth coach since 2000 and 20 (with three of the 20 coming back for a second stint) since they joined the league in 1967. Clearly the Steelers formula has not rubbed off the Pens.
But the Penguins are not alone in using the Vaudeville cain to yank a coach off the bench. Hockey as a whole is notorious for having little patience with their coaches. Only Lindy Ruff seems to be the exception to that rule holding his job since 1998 with the Buffalo Sabres.
In many ways, the NHL resembles soccer in Italy. Filled with high drama every year, its top league (and regarded among the best in the world) has been home to some of the most memorable games of musical coaches I’ve seen in sports.
Still, one has to wonder if Therrien deserved to be yanked. What the uncooth Therrien lacked in tactical awareness he made up in instinctual and passionate coaching. Why, just last year he led the Pittsburgh Penguins to the Stanley Cup finals falling to the Detroit Red Wings 4 games to 2.
This year, with expectations high, the team waddled off to a bad start when it was hit with key injuries to defensemen Ryan Whitney and Sergei Gonchar. Not too many teams, I’m quite certain, would be able to survive without the services of their top two defenders.
Moreover, the Pens lost a lot in terms of grit and depth prior to the trade deadline last year and in the off season. From the annoying Jarko Ruutu to the agitating Colby Armstrong to the talented and aggressive Ryan Malone – among others – the depth of the team was cut.
In addition to not being able to retain the sniping services of Marian Hossa, Pittsburgh replaced the aforementioned players with the likes of Hal Gill, Pascal Dupuis, Eric Godard, Philippe Boucher, Matt Cooke, Miroslav Satan and Ruslan Fedotenko. Was it enough?
For some, Therrien had enough talent (Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin just happen to rank with some of the best hockey players in the world) available to at least have the Pens in a playoff spot.
Time will tell, obviously, if the right move was made. After all, you can’t fire 20 players.
