Right, and I'm not arguing that he wasn't fired. He was fired (or "let go", as I think Lou put it). But then when offered another position, with his hometown team and apparently a few others, he declined and said he wasn't ready to coach. He said he would have been doing a team a disservice. So what if Lou didn't fire him and he stayed on to coach the Isles?
Just saying when he was asked point blank by John Shannon, he said he was expecting and planning to coach the Isles again this year and upon his termination rethought:
“Oh, no, I wanted to start, I’ve been ready,” Trotz said. “I think with Lou making that decision, it allowed me to think a little deeper. I know I would have, you know, from my standpoint, would have committed to my contract.”
“I would have been ready for that. I would have took on that challenge full-on but obviously when the change was made it gave me that option to step back and do what I’m doing right now to start.”
“I was actually hoping to start because I had a chip on my shoulder. I felt that you know it was such a bizarre year. That’s a quality organization with Lou at the helm and the ownership there and the quality of players that we have. I felt that we had something, a little bit something to prove so I wanted to get started and I felt that that’s where we probably go but in this business, as you can see, nothing surprises you.”
So my only point was I don't think this was a "hey Lou, can you fire me because I'm worn out" kinda thing. He wasn't looking to go, he was looking to come back and only after he was whacked did it become more a "I've been canned but I'm still getting paid, so maybe I'll take this opportunity to recharge.":
I don’t know if it’s a year. It’s just taking time,” Trotz said. “I think when I started this process, I said, I’m gonna, you know, I’m in no hurry and I really wasn’t in any hurry. I thought, you know, I added it up. I’ve been coaching probably for about 37 straight years without much of a break.”
“Some advice that I got sometimes is that you always think you have time and you really don’t so there’s some things in my life that I need to get done. And I’m gonna get them done this summer. And then I’ll get right back at it.”
Trotz has been an NHL coach for 25 years and being behind the bench is who he is.
“I think it’s part of my DNA, it’s in my blood,” Trotz said. “Without the game, you know, I will, I will miss it. But I didn’t know when I want to get back right back into it. I’m going to be more productive. I’m going to be in a better frame. I’m going to have to be ready to go.”
And, finally, when asked if he saw it coming:
“I got pretty good instincts. I see how things, meetings are run all that with different organizations and it was a little bit different this year so…my spider senses were out there a little bit so but, you know, I left there in good graces,” Trotz said. “I mean, I talked to Lou, I think, I talked to Lou probably, you know, five or six days ago. We’ve got a great relationship. He’s a great person. He treats you very, very well. And I there’s no ill will at all. I just I have total respect.”
“He made a decision, a hockey decision, which he’s paid to do.”
