Speculation: Our Next Head Coach(es)

[Smitty426]

Well Lou has to know Babcock will want basically total control (including autonomy with his staff) and a big contract and can get all of that elsewhere. At least the first one of those things is a non-starter here. When has Lou gone after a big-name coach besides Burns - who'd just been fired from his third job and out of work for over a year. Lemaire? Lou hadn't won a thing yet and was probably on the griddle himself.

What if Devs owner were to court Babcock with a two year deal to coach and a gentleman's agreement to GM the team after that (Lou can hand reins over to competent staff, and Marty for future after Babs) ? Stevens is an asst during this time which gets him the time needed to learn to become head coach

It's a pipe dream, but very devils like, no? Gets us back to that winning Montreal-like tradition we had, not that long ago

 

[Devil X]

What if Devs owner were to court Babcock with a two year deal to coach and a gentleman's agreement to GM the team after that (Lou can hand reins over to competent staff, and Marty for future after Babs) ? Stevens is an asst during this time which gets him the time needed to learn to become head coach

It's a pipe dream, but very devils like, no? Gets us back to that winning Montreal-like tradition we had, not that long ago

I mean you never know whats going to happen. But i fully believe that Lou's replacement is Marty. I know some dont like that idea. So i highly doubt Lou will agree to give up the power to Babcock in a couple of seasons when he fully intends to give it to Marty.


The way i see it working is Marty comes in now as something maybe even an Asst. GM which i dont think we have had under Lou or like asst. director of player personal. Who knows but it will be to learn the job. Lou will decide when Marty is ready promote him to GM then keep the president job for a bit longer maybe a year then retire. Who takes the Presidents job will prob depend on how Marty is doing as a GM. Also Chris Lam is a dark horse in all this.

 

[Bleedred]

I voted Peter Horachek. Oddly enough, so did two other people.

 

[MadDevil]

I voted Peter Horachek. Oddly enough, so did two other people.

Well he should be used to coaching bad teams by now.

 

[NJDevs26]

Horacheck washed out in Florida and was a stooge for the tank in Toronto (and then more or less admitted management wanted to lose just before he got fired), he's not getting another job.

 

[Bleedred]

LOL I really did vote for him, just being goofy though.

I do feel bad for him. He did an okay job in Florida after taking over for Pete and Oates triplet brother Dineen. Obviously they weren't as good with him as they were this season.

He's like this dude that just gets called to fill in as an interim coach.

His only two NHL head coaching gigs were where his bosses pretty much knew he was just an interim and wasn't coming back before the time he ever even coached a game with either.

 

[glenwo2]

I voted an actual Hydra because that way, if Zubrus messes up again, the Hydra can just eat him.

 

[Tundra]

I'd rather pluck someone from juniors. Secondly, an accomplished coach will not want to come here if he has other options. This is not a top flight job.

 

[ForeverJerseyGirl]

I'd rather pluck someone from juniors. Secondly, an accomplished coach will not want to come here if he has other options. This is not a top flight job.

The only accomplished coach I see in this poll is Mike Babcock, and I think every Devils fan knows that he is about as likely to come here as dinosaurs are to start roaming the planet again. The people who voted for him in this poll probably voted for him because he was their favorite option, not because they perceived him as the most likely next coach for our team.

Every other coach in this poll with experience has warts (which is why they were fired from previous NHL jobs) or else is not experienced and has question marks about his ability to coach at the NHL level. The Devils will either be hiring a coach with warts or with question marks, but he'll probably have his strengths and unique fields of knowledge as well to balance that out.

Coaching the Devils is not a top flight job, but many of the NHL coaching vacancies this summer will also be for teams with warts and question marks. (Even teams who disappoint in the playoffs after great regular seasons come with warts and question marks.) The Devils have obvious flaws such as the gaping holes in the top six, but they also have some strengths--great goaltending and a growing defense as well as a history of organizational success. In particular, a coach with a more defensive focus might enjoy working with the Devils.

The Devils are far from perfect and whoever is hired will probably be in the same boat, but that doesn't mean there can't be improvement and some potential for success together.

 

[tycobb]

I'd rather pluck someone from juniors. Secondly, an accomplished coach will not want to come here if he has other options. This is not a top flight job.

There are only 30 jobs. No coach unless they are nearing retirement would turn down an NHL job.

 

[Bleedred]

There are only 30 jobs. No coach unless they are nearing retirement would turn down an NHL job.

Yeah I think the whole "no one wants to coach here because Lou has a fast trigger finger on coaches" thing is overblown.

Pete was the sixth or seventh longest tenured coach in the league with their current team at the time he was let go. So 22 or 23 teams made a coaching change in the time Pete was coaching the Devils.

I think only Babcock, McLellan, Tippett, Quenneville, Julien, had been with their currently teams before we hired Pete. Funny thing is that half of these guys are rumored to be on the hot seat with their respective teams. Mike Yeo was hired by the Wild the same Summer and Paul MacLean was hired by the Sens that same offseason, though I think he was fired a couple weeks before Pete? I think average head coaching lifespan with the same team is 3 seasons in the NHL.

In McLellan news, I'm now hearing from my buddy that he wouldn't be surprised if McLellan is brought back at this point. He's said McLellan was on the hot seat a couple years ago and he never seemed to get canned. He did say that he would probably be kept after the chokejob last year and he was right.

Sharks break up day is tomorrow I think, we shall see.

 

[Csonked Out]

Any chance that Lou hires Julien back if Boston fires him?

 

[Bleedred]

Any chance that Lou hires Julien back if Boston fires him?

It was such an awkward and weird situation, unlike any of the other firings.

He did bring back Ftorek to coach in Albany (Larry was brought back, as was John Cunniff as an assistant about 10 or 11 years after his midseason firing) though the Julien firing was like no other.

Very odd circumstances and incredibly awkward and unique from the other firings and during season ones particularly. I don't think he'll be back.

When do we hear if Julien is fired or not? Has Boston had breakup day yet?

 

[Csonked Out]

It was such an awkward and weird situation, unlike any of the other firings.

He did bring back Ftorek to coach in Albany (Larry was brought back, as was John Cunniff as an assistant about 10 or 11 years after his midseason firing) though the Julien firing was like no other.

Very odd circumstances and incredibly awkward and unique from the other firings and during season ones particularly. I don't think he'll be back.

When do we hear if Julien is fired or not? Has Boston had breakup day yet?

Not yet, I'm curious about if Boston and San Jose just change some small things or if they actually blow it up entirely.....

On a side note, how bad did Boston screw up that Sequin trade.....our board would be on suicide watch if that ever happened.

 

[Bleedred]

Not yet, I'm curious about if Boston and San Jose just change some small things or if they actually blow it up entirely.....

On a side note, how bad did Boston screw up that Sequin trade.....our board would be on suicide watch if that ever happened.

I actually thought Chiarelli might be a good Lou replacement, though I blame him for their cap situation.

They have a bloated cap situation with a lot of contracts that don't end anytime soon.

They also are another team that couldn't score this year. Them and LAK both had a ton of problems scoring. I was sometimes traumatized watching both of these teams games this year. Both were like the 2013 Devils, where they would sometimes badly outshoot other teams and have 1 goal to show for it. Brought back too many bad memories. Looked like a bunch of Dagonobody and Bobby Butler's in their lineup.

 

[Bologna 1]

still say if lemaire says boucher is worthy, that is enough for me....or if st. Louis goes out early and Hitchcock is canned i'd take him in a second

 

[Wingman77]

still say if lemaire says boucher is worthy, that is enough for me....or if st. Louis goes out early and Hitchcock is canned i'd take him in a second

Hitchcock gets results out of the teams he coaches, but aside from the cup in Dallas, he's had a relatively short shelf life of only a few years with each team before things got worn between him and the teams. He's had some strong regular season teams only to fail to get over the 1st or 2nd round hump

 

[Bleedred]

Hitchcock gets results out of the teams he coaches, but aside from the cup in Dallas, he's had a relatively short shelf life of only a few years with each team before things got worn between him and the teams. He's had some strong regular season teams only to fail to get over the 1st or 2nd round hump

He's also had some teams that weren't nearly as good as touted and no name goaltenders almost everywhere he's been since Dallas (as I was talking about in the other thread regarding the Blues goaltending). He did win the cup with the only legit goaltender he's ever had in Ed Belfour.

I never expected the Flyers and Hitch to get too far with scabs like Cechmanek and Esche. They were good enough to win a Jennings or actually share one with Marty LOL. These guys just couldn't do **** in the playoffs. And the 2014 post Sabres version of Miller was about as good as Cechmanek.

Schneider might be the second best goaltender that Hitchcock would have ever had.

 

[ForeverJerseyGirl]

I'd definitely be fine with Hitchcock if he was available and prepared to coach this team. I think he's a good coach, and I heard that in St. Louis he changed his approach to be a little less abrasive and more modern, so it looks like he can adapt to the current hockey coaching world. Even if he only works for two or three seasons, that's about average for an NHL coach.

 

[Bleedred]

I'd definitely be fine with Hitchcock if he was available and prepared to coach this team. I think he's a good coach, and I heard that in St. Louis he changed his approach to be a little less abrasive and more modern, so it looks like he can adapt to the current hockey coaching world. Even if he only works for two or three seasons, that's about average for an NHL coach.

I'm more confident that we don't give up 800 shots a night with him than Tippett. Tippett's Arizona teams have been bleeding shots against for years now. Even that year that Mike Smith had that huge season and playoffs.

 

[OmNomNom]

really random, but i had a crazy thought in regards to lou and BC kids - what if his long long long term goal is to get jerry york as a coach? does anyone think he'd actually leave BC to try nhl ever? just crazy speculating

 

[Brooklyndevil]

I think the team will make a return to a more conservative approach, especially considering how they've played since the coaching change. I wouldn't be too surprised if Boucher was on the short list. Dave Tippet and Paul MacLean would be on there too. I can't see Stevens because he doesn't have any experience aside from this season. Also, I kind of question his commitment. He doesn't care for the idea of being too far from home and I don't think he would coach a minor league team.

Lou was quoted as saying just that. I'm not sure what that means (Trapping)? Have to say I enjoyed the devils being a fore-check machine, especially, the year we went to the cup.

 

[Zippy316]

Lou was quoted as saying just that. I'm not sure what that means (Trapping)? Have to say I enjoyed the devils being a fore-check machine, especially, the year we went to the cup.

But it only worked because the team was built that way. We had a very good forward group, a so-so defense, and Brodeur who played the puck and helped us move up the ice.

Where we are at now, we have a so-so forward group but a very good defense and goaltending. You have to find a coach that can use the team to its best abilities. A more conservative or defense-oriented coach does that.

Also, don't forget that Boucher didn't just trap his whole time in Tampa either. For a while he had an extremely aggressive forecheck in place. I was kinda referencing who you quoted here by the way.

 

[New Jersey Devils]

McLellan and Sharks mutually part ways, as expected.

 

[glenwo2]

McLellan and Sharks mutually part ways, as expected.

Unsurprising.


Watch him become the Next Devils Head Coach now.