One of the most common discussions I’ve been drawn into of late regarding the Flames is who their next coach will be, after Brent Sutter’s firing/resignation/mutual handshake agreement a couple weeks back. This usually ends up being a short discussion, because I have absolutely no idea.
This is frustrating, because the NHL recycles coaches like most people recycle socks. Given that the Flames appear to be staying the course, it seems like they’d go in a “retread” direction. But all the standards are taken, either too new to their current jobs, or still good enough at their position that they wouldn’t be available. Ken Hitchcock. Peter Laviolette. Dave Tippett. That DeBoer guy. One of the million Sutters (again). Tom Renney. All normal names in the NHL wash, firmly entrenched in their spots, unlikely to join the hamster wheel any time soon.
They could go the “young assistant” route (and those guys eventually work their way into the “recycle” bin). Jim Playfair led them to a first round exit, and a demotion back to “assistant coach” (which seemed like a slap in the face to him at the time, really). Former Flame Bob Boughner said he wasn’t interested last week, and even if it’s hard to take anyone’s word for anything when coaches and players are concerned, it seems like they’d be jumping the gun to have him coach an NHL team at this point, even if he has connections to the organization.
It’s hard to know what direction they should go, really. The idea of a “retread” head coach excites me as much as wet toast, but it feels like they need to go outside the organization for a fresh perspective, and promoting an internal assistant doesn’t solve the issue of needing a new voice or perspective. The last few hires in the Sutter era have been familiar faces (or familiar styles, like the ill-fated Mike Keenan), and it hasn’t done much to change the direction of the team. There’s a limited amount they can do with the players, given the salary cap room they have, and the front office clearly believes a new voice at the top could help.
Ideally, I’d like an offensive-minded, creative, upbeat head coach, someone with a different temperament from what they’ve had before. It feels like they need a bit of an atmosphere change from the Sutter years, and maybe a new voice helps that.
Comments or suggestions on who you might think the head coach should be? Let us know!