Have you ever in your entire life seen an analyst slam a coaching hire on TV?
Honest question, because I haven’t.
Every single time a coach is hired, we hear about what a great fit he is.
Maybe Kypreos’ line about cost being a factor might be the closest I’ve seen.
In general I think they wear kid gloves when it comes to talking about coaches during their tenure because they’re either friends or they want continued access for interviews and insight.
It’s only after a coach gets canned that the stories all start to pour out.
Personally, the endorsement of anyone I see on TV has zero impact on my expectations because I’ve seen it so so so many times before.
As for Green’s past, they could hire Darcy Tucker and I wouldn’t bat an eye, if the team improved. I don’t care who he played for. As for his playing career against us, Travis Green was a huge factor in that one series because of his face off ability. All Toronto played for was a whistle in their own zone and the puck would be out of the zone. No amount of pressure led to any momentum because we lost every offensive zone faceoff with him out there.
Could he be the right guy? Sure, of course. Most coaches lose before they win and become “great coaches”. But I’m not going to lie to myself about my level of enthusiasm about this hire at this point in time.