By Jessy Dhillon
The Vancouver Canucks are heading into the off-season looking for a new bench boss for the first time since after the 2005-2006 season when Marc Crawford was fired. The Canucks let Crawford go after they had failed to make the playoffs. Canucks Management decided to hire within their organization by hiring Alain Vigneault; who was head coach of Vancouver’s farm team: Manitoba Moose. Many questioned the decision to go with defensive minded Vigneault as the new bench boss. In previous seasons, the Canucks were a high flying and high scoring team under Crawford. However, with Todd Bertuzzi being dealt for Roberto Luongo, the Canucks management decided that they would like to be more of a defensive club. Vigneault did an excellent job during his time with the Vancouver Canucks. He led the team to six division championships and a Stanley Cup appearance. It was clear that the Canucks had tuned out Vigneault and needed a new voice in the locker room.
With the Vacant coaching position behind the Vancouver Canucks bench. Let’s look at the possible candidates for the head coaching job.
Lindy Ruff was let go by the Buffalo Sabres early in the season after being the longest running active-tenured coach in the National Hockey League. Ruff was the head coach of the Sabres from 1997-2013 totalling 1165 games. In the 15 season Lindy Ruff was behind the Sabres bench, he led Buffalo to a Stanley Cup final, four conference finals and a total of eight playoff appearances. Buffalo won at least one playoff series in six of the eight seasons that Ruff was in the playoffs. Ruff has won the Jack Adams award for being the National Hockey League’s top coach in the 2005-2006 season and was runner up to Alain Vigneault in voting for the 2006-2007 Jack Adams Award. Ruff is known to be a hard-nosed and in-your-face type of coach. I would like to see a coach that would hold his players accountable. Ruff would be a good fit for the Canucks.
John Tortorella was let go by the New York Rangers after being ousted from the playoffs by the Boston Bruins. Tort’s has something that other coaches on the Canucks radar do not have: A Stanley Cup Ring as a head coach. John Tortorella led the Tampa Bay Lightning to the Stanley Cup in the 2003-2004 season. After spending seven seasons with the Lightning he was fired and then hired by the New York Rangers as head coach with 21 games left in the 2008-2009 season. The Rangers made the playoffs in four out of five seasons with Tortorella, making one Eastern Conference finals appearance. Tortorella has been criticised for being rude and harsh with the media and putting down his own players. I would love to see the battles Coach Tortorella would have with the hockey mad media in Vancouver. I also think the way he calls his players out would not work well with a veteran team like the Canucks. I do not think Tortorella would survive in any hockey mad city and their media.
TSN’s Bob Mackenzie reported that the Canucks were interested in John Stevens who is an assistant coach with the Los Angeles Kings. Stevens previously was the head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers from 2006-2010. John Stevens is known to work well with young defensemen. He is credited with helping all-star defensemen Drew Doughty improve his defensive game. Stevens also has done a great job working with Slava Voynov. Canucks defensemen: Alex Edler, Chris Tanev and Frank Corrado would all benefit from having Stevens work with them. The Canucks would have to wait to interview Stevens because the Kings are still in the playoffs.
Dallas Eakins has been the coach of the Toronto Marlies for the past four seasons. His name has been thrown out quite a bit as a candidate for a National Hockey League coaching job over the past two seasons. Eakins is probably the most NHL ready coach in the minor leagues. Dallas Eakins was reportedly in Vancouver for an interview by Canucks management on Wednesday. Hockey Night in Canada reported that the Canucks had to ask the Toronto Maple Leafs management for permission to talk to Eakins regarding the Canucks vacant coaching job. Eakins is known as a player’s coach who has been credited with the amazing turnaround of Maple Leafs’ Nazim Kadri. Eakins does reportedly have a place in the area where he stays with his wife, who is an actress, in the offseason.
With the NHL Draft and free agency starting soon after the Stanley Cup finals, The Canucks should have a coach in place by then. Coach’s input on player acquisitions is a key to a team success. If I had to pick a coach that I see the Canucks choosing out of the four that I mentioned. I would think management would go with Dallas Eakins. It would be nice to see if a “player’s coach” can do with a veteran Canucks team that still has the potential of winning the Stanley Cup.
