New Head Coach-who will it be?

[Scomerica]

It needs to be someone that will push the younger guys in my opinion rather than a player friendly coach. We have a lot of prospects coming through soon

 

[Fistfullofbeer]

Sounds guood, but why would that guy want to come here?

Comeon man. If we think that only bad coaches will want to come here, then we should stop complaining when we just hire the available ones, who are just all bad.

Enticing a coach to come here will take some work but its not impossible. You can sell ton's of things to the coach:

- A team willing to spend to the cap
- A sports town which sticks to their teams even through the bad years.
- A young team with budding players like Beniers, Wright, Kakko, Catton and other prospects.

Making some good moves this off-season could also help.

 

[The Marquis]

Comeon man. If we think that only bad coaches will want to come here, then we should stop complaining when we just hire the available ones, who are just all bad.

Enticing a coach to come here will take some work but its not impossible. You can sell ton's of things to the coach:

- A team willing to spend to the cap
- A sports town which sticks to their teams even through the bad years.
- A young team with budding players like Beniers, Wright, Kakko, Catton and other prospects.

Making some good moves this off-season could also help.

There's also the fact that the successful teams already have coaches in place. So everything left is a gamble anyway.

 

[RainyCityHockey]

Comeon man. If we think that only bad coaches will want to come here, then we should stop complaining when we just hire the available ones, who are just all bad.

Enticing a coach to come here will take some work but its not impossible. You can sell ton's of things to the coach:

- A team willing to spend to the cap
- A sports town which sticks to their teams even through the bad years.
- A young team with budding players like Beniers, Wright, Kakko, Catton and other prospects.

Making some good moves this off-season could also help.

I'm just asking.

Also, unless this team actually takes a direction and makes moves according to it this current Kraken roster isn't enticing at all to coach.

It's a, at best, mid team with an ownership that seems to think and expect playoffs out of it.

Though, overall I think they'll get a name/more proven coach, it's just that this is still the same hockey ops group just with different titles.

 

[sigma six]

Laviolette is an idiot who can't think outside the box. He simply follows the same hoary old NHL template from the dawn of time and pretends he's "coaching". He flamed out badly in Washington (look at how the Caps revitalized themselves by canning Laviolette and replacing him with a bright young head coach

Something like this would be ideal IMO. Earlier this year I was like "where the hell did Spencer Carbery come from?!"
He spent the late teens steadily moving up, from the OHL to AHL to a two-year stint as assistant coach with the Leafs, and back to DC as coach.
A rapid but positive trajectory that makes it seem like he was always going to be a head coach after ten years of constant upward movement.

Not sure whom out there is similar to how Carbery grew, but he's a young 40-something yet still had seasoning. Allowed DC to skip the circle of dinos, would be sweet to find our version of that.

 

[The Marquis]

Something like this would be ideal IMO. Earlier this year I was like "where the hell did Spencer Carbery come from?!"
He spent the late teens steadily moving up, from the OHL to AHL to a two-year stint as assistant coach with the Leafs, and back to DC as coach.
A rapid but positive trajectory that makes it seem like he was always going to be a head coach after ten years of constant upward movement.

Not sure whom out there is similar to how Carbery grew, but he's a young 40-something yet still had seasoning. Allowed DC to skip the circle of dinos, would be sweet to find our version of that.

Tad O’had!

 

[Fistfullofbeer]

I'm just asking.

Also, unless this team actually takes a direction and makes moves according to it this current Kraken roster isn't enticing at all to coach.

It's a, at best, mid team with an ownership that seems to think and expect playoffs out of it.

Though, overall I think they'll get a name/more proven coach, it's just that this is still the same hockey ops group just with different titles.

And that is on the GM and ownership to sell that to prospective coaches. It's not much dissimilar than what they need to do with FA's either. Like you said, this team is currently a mid-team, at best. The coach is expected to interview for what they are adding to the team as much as the team needs to sell itself as being an attractive option.

I am not a fan of the Botterill and Francis promotions but there is work to be done, they realize that and hopefully focus on it. If the team makes smart changes this off-season and continues the work next off-season, we can be in much much better shape.

 

[RainyCityHockey]

And that is on the GM and ownership to sell that to prospective coaches. It's not much dissimilar than what they need to do with FA's either. Like you said, this team is currently a mid-team, at best. The coach is expected to interview for what they are adding to the team as much as the team needs to sell itself as being an attractive option.

I am not a fan of the Botterill and Francis promotions but there is work to be done, they realize that and hopefully focus on it. If the team makes smart changes this off-season and continues the work next off-season, we can be in much much better shape.

It's the same dudes, just with different job discriptions, making the decisions.

I have to watch the full presser again but the moment I watched Botterrill talked about being as aggressive in free agency as last season looking to make similar signings etc.

 

[sigma six]

Tad O’had!

I don't know much about the Mavericks, but it seems like he's done a great job with them. If he has the chops then I hope he gets his shot.

 

[Fistfullofbeer]

It's the same dudes, just with different job discriptions, making the decisions.

I have to watch the full presser again but the moment I watched Botterrill talked about being as aggressive in free agency as last season looking to make similar signings etc.

I watched the presser. Botterill did talk about being aggressive in FA but at the same time he also mentioned of keeping spots open on the roster for the kids. He also talked about using draft capital to improve the team. Holloway also said that she does not expect us to be a SC team but that in our 5th season we want to get closer to being a perennial playoff team.

They basically said that they have put all the options on the table and hope to improve this season. I am not going to start worrying about us re-signing another Stephenson type player yet.

 

[CLW]

I watched the presser. Botterill did talk about being aggressive in FA but at the same time he also mentioned of keeping spots open on the roster for the kids. He also talked about using draft capital to improve the team. Holloway also said that she does not expect us to be a SC team but that in our 5th season we want to get closer to being a perennial playoff team.

They basically said that they have put all the options on the table and hope to improve this season. I am not going to start worrying about us re-signing another Stephenson type player yet.

They sounded reasonable enough. They know there's a lot of work to be done. Seemed to me what made them react is the way the wheels came off the team this year; things we've talked about here at length - the lack of identity, the lack of focus and the odd/poor team spirit/chemistry (which clearly improved post TDL but by then it was too late to save the season). Botterill also said that the team needs to be much stronger in both the o-zone and d-zone slot area and get back to playing with speed as the team's identity.

 

[Interior Cascadian]

The only names you mention that even remotely interest me are Carle and Ferschweiler. The rest are a horror show of duds.

How is Brind’Amour a dud?

 

[Toomany7pins]

Like I said...a collection of duds.

I resemble that remark!

 

[Fuhrious]

How is Brind’Amour a dud?

What's he won?

And why are we circling back around to Brind'Amour? He isn't coming to Seattle.

 

[Interior Cascadian]

What's he won?

And why are we circling back around to Brind'Amour? He isn't coming to Seattle.

I don’t expect him to come to Seattle either, but if the Sound of Hockey guys have reason to think there’s a chance then I’m curious if I might have missed something.

As far as what he’s accomplished? He’s consistently made the playoffs with a notable run in 2019. Presumably that’s with rosters limited by an internal cap like what Francis had to deal with for his time as GM. Given the list of candidates we’re throwing around, I think that’s something. It’s not like there’s an unemployed Jon Cooper out there.

 

[Dead Coyote]

My preference would be to pick a coach in junior or college who has experience working with prospects and a good resume of guys he's coached.

My number one pick would be Kyle Gustafson who just recently last year became head coach of the Winterhawks. He's been an assistant coach with them for over 20 years though and the Winterhawks org is one of the best in the world at developing prospects, he's coached Drouin, Mackinnon, Seth Jones, Nic Petan, Ty Rattie, Cody Glass, Lepsic, our own Bjorkstrand, Dubinsky, Jarvis, Niederreiter, and a whole bunch more.

I wouldn't mind getting Boudreau if he's available and wants to coach. He's generally liked by players but has still been known as somewhat tough on players, has seen some decent success and I seem to recall for the most part him being not as much of an old boys club guy and mostly letting prospects develop underneath him. I know he's known mostly as a regular season coach but I think he brought literally all of the franchises he was part of outside of Washington to better playoff performances and we really shouldn't care anyways.

 

[Fuhrious]

I don’t expect him to come to Seattle either, but if the Sound of Hockey guys have reason to think there’s a chance then I’m curious if I might have missed something.

As far as what he’s accomplished? He’s consistently made the playoffs with a notable run in 2019. Presumably that’s with rosters limited by an internal cap like what Francis had to deal with for his time as GM. Given the list of candidates we’re throwing around, I think that’s something. It’s not like there’s an unemployed Jon Cooper out there.

My issue is that, to my mind, we dont really know how good of a coach Brind'Amour actually is. He's never had anything but a star-studded team the entire time he's been with Carolina, How much of his success is due to never having had to coach a team without absolute studs like Aho, Slavin, etc.? He's definitely not going to have that to work with in Seattle...

 

[Fistfullofbeer]

My issue is that, to my mind, we dont really know how good of a coach Brind'Amour actually is. He's never had anything but a star-studded team the entire time he's been with Carolina, How much of his success is due to never having had to coach a team without absolute studs like Aho, Slavin, etc.? He's definitely not going to have that to work with in Seattle...

Agreed. And that is why I was saying that we need to look for a coach who can get more out of the team than the individual talent that the team has is key for us. This coach doesn't need to be our coach when we get close to winning a Stanley Cup, but we do need somebody who can get more out of the players than what we have seen so far.

Anytime you go for a coach which has a Stanley Cup, you know that they have had at least some number of elite players on their team, which we don't even have one of.

 

[The Marquis]

Agreed. And that is why I was saying that we need to look for a coach who can get more out of the team than the individual talent that the team has is key for us. This coach doesn't need to be our coach when we get close to winning a Stanley Cup, but we do need somebody who can get more out of the players than what we have seen so far.

Anytime you go for a coach which has a Stanley Cup, you know that they have had at least some number of elite players on their team, which we don't even have one of.

That’s sort of why I think having a coach who doesn’t have their name on the Cup is a good idea. Motivation to win. If you’ve won, you have competitiveness, but you don’t have that bucket list item to check anymore. As such, you can glide with a good or bad team. Yes, I realize the competitiveness is still very high, but there’s something to be said about… what… 1 head coach having won the Cup with two teams? I feel like I’m pulling that out of my ass, but it sounds right.

 

[majormajor]

My issue is that, to my mind, we dont really know how good of a coach Brind'Amour actually is. He's never had anything but a star-studded team the entire time he's been with Carolina, How much of his success is due to never having had to coach a team without absolute studs like Aho, Slavin, etc.? He's definitely not going to have that to work with in Seattle...

Agreed. And that is why I was saying that we need to look for a coach who can get more out of the team than the individual talent that the team has is key for us. This coach doesn't need to be our coach when we get close to winning a Stanley Cup, but we do need somebody who can get more out of the players than what we have seen so far.

Anytime you go for a coach which has a Stanley Cup, you know that they have had at least some number of elite players on their team, which we don't even have one of.

Aho and Slavin are great, but they are not THAT great that they mean their team will be an automatic winner.

Aho is somewhere around the 30th best scorer in the league most years. After that their top forward now seems to be Jarvis, another great but not THAT great player. Svechnikov is a good topliner usually but not the most talented guy and is struggling now. Necas finally broke out this year before they traded him in the ill-fated Rantanen gambit. How many Norris nominations does Slavin have? Because we've got guys like Hughes and Werenski who are supposed to be better and their teams aren't winning 50 games per year.

The Canes lineup has a lot of holes in it, or what would be holes if not for Brind'Amour and the teams incredible buy-in. Like who is their second best D-man now? They've lost a lot of their depth there. Brind'Amour has to make hay with guys like Kotkaniemi and Jackson Blake and Jaylen Chatfield high up in his lineup. He's an incredible coach at creating something that is more than the sum of its parts. What are you talking about? He's the exemplar of that!!

Anyways next to zero chance he's leaving Carolina, I just thought you were horribly wrong and had to tell you.

 

[Fistfullofbeer]

Aho and Slavin are great, but they are not THAT great that they mean their team will be an automatic winner.

Aho is somewhere around the 30th best scorer in the league most years. After that their top forward now seems to be Jarvis, another great but not THAT great player. Svechnikov is a good topliner usually but not the most talented guy and is struggling now. Necas finally broke out this year before they traded him in the ill-fated Rantanen gambit. How many Norris nominations does Slavin have? Because we've got guys like Hughes and Werenski who are supposed to be better and their teams aren't winning 50 games per year.

The Canes lineup has a lot of holes in it, or what would be holes if not for Brind'Amour and the teams incredible buy-in. Like who is their second best D-man now? They've lost a lot of their depth there. Brind'Amour has to make hay with guys like Kotkaniemi and Jackson Blake and Jaylen Chatfield high up in his lineup. He's an incredible coach at creating something that is more than the sum of its parts. What are you talking about? He's the exemplar of that!!

Anyways next to zero chance he's leaving Carolina, I just thought you were horribly wrong and had to tell you.

I think we need to start thinking on terms of how many players do other teams have that are better than our top players. I would consider Necas, Svechinkov, Slavin, Aho all better than anyone on our roster.

Yes, the rest of the roster is pretty "meh" but those 4 players above can make all the difference.

 

[majormajor]

I think we need to start thinking on terms of how many players do other teams have that are better than our top players. I would consider Necas, Svechinkov, Slavin, Aho all better than anyone on our roster.

Yes, the rest of the roster is pretty "meh" but those 4 players above can make all the difference.

- Necas just broke out and is now no longer on the team. Svechnikov isn't that good.

- There are several non-playoff teams with a better top 4 than that.

- They're certainly not so good that you would expect seven straight playoff appearances averaging nearly 50 wins per year. That's an insane record with middling top talent.

- The Canes are a machine, not a top-talent driven team. It's not just me telling you this, go ask Canes fans.

- Yes the Kraken don't have a top talent group like that yet but it is not so lofty that we can't imagine the emerging young core getting there.

 

[Fuhrious]

I think we need to start thinking on terms of how many players do other teams have that are better than our top players. I would consider Necas, Svechinkov, Slavin, Aho all better than anyone on our roster.

Yes, the rest of the roster is pretty "meh" but those 4 players above can make all the difference.

I'd add Jarvis (we wish Beniers panned out like this guy), Burns (even at 39) and possibly Stankoven to your list.

 

[Fistfullofbeer]

- Necas just broke out and is now no longer on the team. Svechnikov isn't that good.

Svechkinov is certainly better than anyone on our team. Yes, he had a bad season but compare his 3 previous seasons to this one. For Necas, he had 2023-24 as an "off" year but still was good for 53 points in 77 games. The season before he had 71 in 82 games.

- There are several non-playoff teams with a better top 4 than that.

I am definitely aware of the fact that almost every team in the league, including non-playoff teams, have atleast 1-2 roster players better than us. Also, I thought we were talking about the Canes.

- They're certainly not so good that you would expect seven straight playoff appearances averaging nearly 50 wins per year. That's an insane record with middling top talent.

Why not? Good coaching certainly plays a crucial part but would you expect even someone like Brind'Amour to be able to have consistent playoff runs with our roster? I wouldn't.

- The Canes are a machine, not a top-talent driven team. It's not just me telling you this, go ask Canes fans.

Yes. But again, a machine needs parts to operate. The better the parts, the better the output/product.

- Yes the Kraken don't have a top talent group like that yet but it is not so lofty that we can't imagine the emerging young core getting there.

Emerging core. Sure, maybe in 2+ years.

 

[Fuhrious]

Svechkinov is certainly better than anyone on our team. Yes, he had a bad season but compare his 3 previous seasons to this one. For Necas, he had 2023-24 as an "off" year but still was good for 53 points in 77 games. The season before he had 71 in 82 games.

I am definitely aware of the fact that almost every team in the league, including non-playoff teams, have atleast 1-2 roster players better than us. Also, I thought we were talking about the Canes.

Why not? Good coaching certainly plays a crucial part but would you expect even someone like Brind'Amour to be able to have consistent playoff runs with our roster? I wouldn't.

Yes. But again, a machine needs parts to operate. The better the parts, the better the output/product.

Emerging core. Sure, maybe in 2+ years.

laughing emoji because while I can see who you're arguing with even if I no longer see their actual comments