Who will coach the Wings in 2018-19?

[yave1964]

  I gotta think that this is it for Jeff Blashill, two consecutive seasons of missing the playoffs, this oneeven worse than the one before, there is no way possible he can be retained in a normal world. So it comes down to, do the Wings want to go with an experienced NHL head coach or with the next hot thing?

 

  Blash was just that, he had led the Griffins to the Calder cup a couple of years before, he was a Babcock protégé and hand picked as the no brainer replacement the problem is the set in their ways clubhouse ate him alive. Firing him will be more or less putting him out of his misery. The top candidates IMHO are:

 

JEFF BLASHILL. Yes, I would fire him so quick that he wouldn't ever remember being hired in the first place but possession is nine tenths of the law and the most conservative of organizations is slow to make changes. There is always a chance he retains his job.

 

DARRYL SUTTER My personal favorite, a year off to recharge after parting ways with the Kings, an outstanding pedigree, he took an irrelivant organization in San Jose and made them contenders, too a Flames team to the Finals and won two cups in Los Angeles. The list of young players who either established themselves or found another gear under Sutter's guidance is long. If it were my team he would be the first last and only person who I would call. I believe the Wings need a veteran coach who knows how to work with veteran players.

 

MIKE KITCHEN Not sure how Kitchen has went all this time and never landed a head coaching job in the NHL. Kitch is a former Colorado Rockies teammate of Quenneville and drinking buddy who has been a Hawks assistant for 3 cups, he is gushed about in NHL circles as the man behind the throne who is an attention to detail guy and a huge part of the Hawks success. Sooner or later someonewil give him a shot, I have no problem if he were to get tabbed.

 

TODD NELSON Nelson is the coach of the Griffins and like Blashill led the baby wings to a Calder Cup, a long time AHL coach who ran the Edmonton Oilers for a few minutes a couple of years ago. Probably deserves a fair shot somewhere at some time but with the failures of Blashill with a similar pedigree it is doubtful the Wings repeat the same thing they did last time.

 

KEVIN DINEEN Long time NHLer whose Dad won cups with the Wings in the fifties, Dineen won a division title with the Panthers in 2011-12 the first division title in team history. Known as a bit of a screamer and an intimidating coach, he would be a good fit to help break up the country club attitude.

 

  Those are my choices, I would go with Sutter miles ahead of the rest probably followed by Dineen then Kitchen.

[SpikeDDS]

I like Sutter too, @yave1964 .

 

It is difficult finding coaches who are BOTH good at developing young players AND coaching veterans at the same time. Sutter has done that.

 

I used to like the idea of Bob Hartley, and still don’t hate it, but he didn’t do so well with Calgary, and I think Sutter’s record gives him a demonstrable edge in that discussion.

 

I think we need a guy with a resumé. No disrespect for Nelson, but it is time someone came in with gravitas and started building a foundation for winning again. A record that veterans can’t dismiss, and developmental skills which demand respect of the young. We don’t just need a shake-up. We need a shake-up with legitimacy behind it. 

[yave1964]

I would have zero problem with Hartley if the Wings blew it up and went all kids, he does a fantastic job with youth such as 19 year olds SeanMonahan and Johnny Gaudreau. the problem is he loses them once they are established and the Wings have a veteran team that is set in their ways and I believe that as much as I like Hartley the clubhouse cliché would not respoind to him. Sutter was in a constant battle with even Doughty, he does not play favoritism and demands respect and has the resume toearn said respect. 

[SpikeDDS]

@yave1964 

 

But at the same time, at least to some degree, the Avs responded well to Hartley. And at that time, there WERE veterans as well as young players. It’s wasn't all youngsters. But for some reason, he has not been able to duplicate that with anyone since. But I think you are correct that he WOULD do better with a complete blow-up.

 

The problem probably would not be soon-to-be-gone guys like Z. I think Z would understand that Hartley would have to establish his new system and help him. The ones I would worry about are the second tier guys who aren’t going anywhere for a while and KNOW that hey aren’t going anywhere for a while. There is little real threat of “do it my way or we will find someone else who will.” If they don’t willingly choose to follow, Hartley would fail.