Penguins fire Mike Johnston, Mike Sullivan named new head coach
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He was a bad coach. He managed to drag Pittsburgh from top of the tree to a bubble team.
That wasn't his fault. He had to deal with a lot of injuries, player changes, and the NHL changed. Offensive powerhouses aren't working in today's NHL. Dallas is an exception.
He did a good job in managing the cards he was dealt. He was never given a fair chance to prove his worth.
I agree. Just shows that it's more the personnel than the coach. JR hired Johnston and also looks like he's poorly constructed this team.
So he had to deal with things that all teams have to deal with? Weak excuses and you know it.
He got given his chance and blew it. Pittsburgh would not have made the play offs with him.
That's BS and you know it. Penguins would get in as a wildcard at the worst.
Last year, they had a bad injury situation and still made the playoffs and were competitive.
DearDiary
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- Aug 29, 2010
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Johnston spent his coaching career coaching an all out offensive system, then all a sudden turns to a conservative for the Pens. Have Pens fans ever wondered why?
Johnston knew his team isn't good enough for the cup, is just a team that could make the playoffs. Johnston coached a system that has a high chance of the Pens sneaking into the playoffs. Obviously, he would turn to whoever played consistently which would be veteran players. That doesn't mean he prefers them.
Also, why would a coach focusing solely on just making the playoffs, take a risk with Sprong who could potentially lose him a game or 2? Rutherford pushing him made no sense. Both were in it only for this season, why would Johnston care what happens with Sprong? Why would Rutherford interfere with Johnstons strategy to make the playoffs?
Firing Johnston was a mistake, in fact, hiring was even a bigger mistake. Rutherford is an idiot thinking that the Pens needed an offensive coach with the roster they have, Johnston had his hands tied as his preferred system would obviously not work. I couldn't care less about Johnston, but the Pens fans ragging on him should be putting down Rutherford instead
I wholeheartedly agree with this post.
However, I'd go above Rutherford and blame Pens ownership for ever hiring him to begin with.
The Penguins only just managed to sneak in last year with him and were trending downwards, WITHOUT INJURIES, this year.
Dipsy Doodle
Rent A Barn
- May 28, 2006
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Yeah, a roster with Crosby, Malkin, Letang, and Kessel is begging for a Lemaire-esque trap coach.
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Dipsy Doodle
Rent A Barn
- May 28, 2006
- 77,086
- 21,861
Because you conveniently disappeared and forgot our last discussion:
They were floating between a wild card and 9th and were still finding their groove. They would have made it once they got rolling.
I usually get to see five or six Pens games a year. Haven't seen one this year. I have no idea how in the world- regardless of the coach- a team with Crosby, Malkin, Kessel, etc can lose. Like out of principle, those guys can take games over by sheer will, and play outside of 'systems' and win.
featherhawk
Registered User
- Dec 13, 2006
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they should have hired Guy Boucher who was fired/let out of this european contract awhile back....far too much skill on that team to be doing what they are doing...
Why didn't Rutherford hire Boucher? Any hockey fan knows this would have been the perfect fit for Pitts. There's a lot of bad coaches I would hire before even thinking about Mike Sullivan. Just an awful hire that was likely due to the old boys club mentality.
895
Registered User
- Jun 15, 2007
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Remember when Mike Yeo coached the Pens PP? It sucked so they fired him. Now Yeo is doing great as the Minnesota head coach and the Pens PP still sucks.
The Pens PP sucking is on the players. It's not like there's a huge variety of tactics involved in the PP anyway. There's pretty much only two formations being used by NHL teams. It's all about execution.
The Pens PP sucking is on the players. It's not like there's a huge variety of tactics involved in the PP anyway. There's pretty much only two formations being used by NHL teams. It's all about execution.
Semantics
PUBLIC ENEMY #1
Andrew Brunette runs the Wild PP, I think.
And the coach is responsible for that. The PP coach is responsible for who plays where on the PP, and for correcting execution mistakes. If the players aren't executing, it's his fault.
They have a worse PP than the Maple Leafs, a team that has no offensive talent. That's on the coaching.
DearDiary
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- Aug 29, 2010
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Is Tocchet telling Crosby to make low percentage plays? Telling Crosby and Malkin to pass up shots?
Listen to what Johnston said when the season began, listen to what Tocchet has said about the pp throughout the season. The problem is on the players. You have Malkin come out and say players don't give enough effort and Hornqvist say players don't follow the coach's system.
Firing Bylsma is the biggest problem the franchise has ever faced. The players listened to him, they played hard just for him. It's was never Bylsma's fault, but the roster construction by the GM and the stars on the team.
"B-but he's an idiot! He played hall of famer Iginla on his offside!"
So? Do Pens fans think he just did it for fun? So much hate on that subject but I've never seen Pens fans ever think about anything. It's always blaming but never the question gets asked "why". Why does the coach do this? Why did the GM make that trade. No one ever thinks, it's always that the coach and GM were just dumb and didn't care about their job. Sound logic.
Blame Tocchet all you want, but listen to what he says and the result on the ice. There's a single player that counteracts every single thing he says about his system and that's Crosby.
Jules Winnfield
Fleurymanbad
- Mar 19, 2010
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Sullivan has Maatta/Dumoulin and a bunch of turds on defense. Daley has been pleasant since coming on board but guys like Cole, Clendening, and Warsofsky have been God ****ing awful. With a capital F.
LetsGoIslanders
Registered User
The Penguins are rudderless.
The Pens hired Jim Rutherford as GM. How any team found him fit to manage an NHL team is beyond me. One Stanley Cup season and a bunch of playoff seasons in the cupcake Southeast Division. Had it not been for a Stanley Cup, they might as well have hired Milbury.
Hey, Don Waddell is now working for the 'Canes. Maybe they can pry him loose from Carolina in the off-season.
The Pens hired Jim Rutherford as GM. How any team found him fit to manage an NHL team is beyond me. One Stanley Cup season and a bunch of playoff seasons in the cupcake Southeast Division. Had it not been for a Stanley Cup, they might as well have hired Milbury.
Hey, Don Waddell is now working for the 'Canes. Maybe they can pry him loose from Carolina in the off-season.
This is why I say Pens ownership gets the majority of the blame. Most likely it was also them who told Rutherford to go "all in" as well.
Jules Winnfield
Fleurymanbad
- Mar 19, 2010
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Morehouse wanted a yes man. He found it in JR. Pretty easy to see. They wanted a GM who would let Morehouse call the shots and not give all the power to the GM/Coach.
The real problem is Lemieux/Burkle put their trust and faith in David Morehouse, a career politician for the democratic party, to have hands on operational decision making with the players/coach/GM of the team. This is first and foremost the biggest **** up of the franchise.
Ziggy Stardust
Master Debater
I guess the Pens weren't aware of how crappy the Hurricanes were after 2007. Rutherford is an old relic and the current Penguins have one of the worst lineups in the league. It's too top heavy with little depth and a horrendous blueline.
These Are The Days
I need about tree fiddy
People get on Bylsma on his unwillingness to adapt/adjust but Boucher would play his damned trap when down 2 goals.
Trust me... he's not the guy you want
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