Who should replace Ryan Huska as Flames Head Coach?

[TrentCrimmIndependent]

Extending a coach after an overachieving year but before the next season's games have started so he can show that he can carry over some of that success is pretty amateur GMing.

Conroy has done a lot of good for the rebuild and even some surprisingly excellent moves under the circumstances, but unless he was knowingly/willingly risking bottoming out then the timing of the re-sign was not well thought out.

I still think he's doing a better job of 'building' than Treliving did by simply not jumping on risky now-oriented trades and free agent signings to fast forward the rebuild. He's doing it right and that i applaud. But naturally, first time GMs are going to have some warts too.

I think Huska is an AHL caliber coach. But ironically he prefers his established NHLers over AHLers ready or pushing to graduate full time.

Makes no sense in a rebuild. If he's trying to save the season still, fine. But the approach had better change in the next two weeks. We're a few losses away from objectively unsalvageable.

[Locke]

[Jay Random]

Originally Posted by TrentCrimmIndependent

Extending a coach after an overachieving year but before the next season's games have started so he can show that he can carry over some of that success is pretty amateur GMing.

Extending any coach before the last year of his contract is SOP for pretty nearly all GMs. It shows the players that they can't just gang up and get the coach fired because they don't like him.

[Enoch Root]

Originally Posted by DoubleK

No opinion, just opinions on other's opinions.

Gotcha.

You brought up Boudreau. I said no thank you. It's a pretty straight-forward conversation. But apparently not for you.

[DoubleK]

Originally Posted by Enoch Root

You brought up Boudreau. I said no thank you. It's a pretty straight-forward conversation. But apparently not for you.

Ok bro.

You are right.

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by Jay Random

Extending any coach before the last year of his contract is SOP for pretty nearly all GMs. It shows the players that they can't just gang up and get the coach fired because they don't like him.

The financial security is also important so the coach doesn't start making desperate decisions to save his own hide. If people think he is leaning too much on veterans now, it would be even worse if he thought this season could be it for him. He also only got a 2 year extension past this season, so it wasn't like they just gave him the keys with no accountability. It's the coach equivalent of a show-me deal. It's not unusual and pretty standard that the last year is insurance for the coach and teams often let them go before the last year kicks in if they feel they need to. The way I see it, Huska probably has this season and into next season before they decide if he is the long term future.

[Calgary4LIfe]

I have always thought Boudreau was overrated. I did feel sorry for the way that Vancouver treated him. However, the fans there were very vocal in wanting him to stay. He got canned and replaced by Tocchet, and I don't think anyone has complained since.


Gallant has always been replaced unceremoniously as well. I don't look at him as a good coach.

Torts is not a good coach at all any longer. The last thing I would want is for him to come in and start playing mind games with the young players - he would be last on my list.


Laviolette used to be a coach that I thought was really good. His last few stops did nothing but perhaps show that he is ready for retirement. He doesn't want to coach in Canada (according to the rumours), and I, for one, am thankful.


Huska had one great season, and one terrible start. What is the same between this season and last is that the roster stinks. He got the team to perform without being abrasive, threatening, or mind games - like Keenan and Hartley rely on. He is not the player's coach like Gulutzan was, but he isn't hard like Sutter either. I find him to be right in that middle spectrum. He isn't afraid to bench anyone.

Is he the version of Jon Cooper that I hope this organization finds, who is in his first NHL head coaching gig, and so far so good? Or is he simply a placeholder to get through this turbulent rebuild? Time will tell.


I have no idea why people are arguing against him. It is as if this is a contending roster that should be challenging for the cup, if not for a disastrous coaching hire. I am much more concerned with having a coach in place who is firm, but not a hard-ass, who can instill into them the ability to play defence at the NHL level, and who holds them accountable in becoming good pros. Hartley was like that in many ways (lots of prospects cut their teeth under Hartley, and a lot of them did well in a few organizations). I would be happy with that, but without the 'behind the scenes stuff'.


The focus of the coach should be on development. It can't be right now as there is no 'rebuild announcement' yet, but at some point this season, I expect the gears to shift.


Huska is in his 2nd season as a head coach in the NHL. Has he been that awful that he needs to be fired? I disagree with any assertion that he has been that awful. I don't think the best environment for the kids to develop in was the pond-hockey style that the Oilers used to usher in Hall and Eberle.


The best coach for 'now' is a coach who is willing to develop players. That should be the focus here shortly I imagine. Huska will show us whether he deserves another extension or not in these next couple of years. Up until this point, I don't agree that he has shown us that the Flames are better off finding another coach right now.

[mikeecho]

Coming into this year, Gulutzan was a career 0.53% Head Coach. He's the definition of mid. Having no coach would yield similar performance as he has had as a Head Coach.

The next coach of the Flames will be hired in 2 years. Huska will coach for his life every night making questionable roster decisions but the Flames will still bottom out and pick high for the next 2 seasons. The fruits of Conroy's solid drafting over the last 2 drafts and presumably next 2 drafts will start to yield solid roster players and a turning of the page.

I can only hope that Joel Quennville will be available at that time, but he'll be leading Anaheim to the top of the Pacific Division so I'll have to come to terms with that.

[Bingo]

Originally Posted by TrentCrimmIndependent

Extending a coach after an overachieving year but before the next season's games have started so he can show that he can carry over some of that success is pretty amateur GMing.

Conroy has done a lot of good for the rebuild and even some surprisingly excellent moves under the circumstances, but unless he was knowingly/willingly risking bottoming out then the timing of the re-sign was not well thought out.

I still think he's doing a better job of 'building' than Treliving did by simply not jumping on risky now-oriented trades and free agent signings to fast forward the rebuild. He's doing it right and that i applaud. But naturally, first time GMs are going to have some warts too.

I think Huska is an AHL caliber coach. But ironically he prefers his established NHLers over AHLers ready or pushing to graduate full time.

Makes no sense in a rebuild. If he's trying to save the season still, fine. But the approach had better change in the next two weeks. We're a few losses away from objectively unsalvageable.

Seriously?

So you fire him instead and hire another guy keeping the Flame's coaching carousel going around, and ditching a guy that got the team further than you planned with a roster that you ripped apart for futures?

Just a head shaker for me.

[manwiches]

Originally Posted by Calgary4LIfe

I have always thought Boudreau was overrated. I did feel sorry for the way that Vancouver treated him. However, the fans there were very vocal in wanting him to stay. He got canned and replaced by Tocchet, and I don't think anyone has complained since.


Gallant has always been replaced unceremoniously as well. I don't look at him as a good coach.

Torts is not a good coach at all any longer. The last thing I would want is for him to come in and start playing mind games with the young players - he would be last on my list.


Laviolette used to be a coach that I thought was really good. His last few stops did nothing but perhaps show that he is ready for retirement. He doesn't want to coach in Canada (according to the rumours), and I, for one, am thankful.


Huska had one great season, and one terrible start. What is the same between this season and last is that the roster stinks. He got the team to perform without being abrasive, threatening, or mind games - like Keenan and Hartley rely on. He is not the player's coach like Gulutzan was, but he isn't hard like Sutter either. I find him to be right in that middle spectrum. He isn't afraid to bench anyone.

Is he the version of Jon Cooper that I hope this organization finds, who is in his first NHL head coaching gig, and so far so good? Or is he simply a placeholder to get through this turbulent rebuild? Time will tell.


I have no idea why people are arguing against him. It is as if this is a contending roster that should be challenging for the cup, if not for a disastrous coaching hire. I am much more concerned with having a coach in place who is firm, but not a hard-ass, who can instill into them the ability to play defence at the NHL level, and who holds them accountable in becoming good pros. Hartley was like that in many ways (lots of prospects cut their teeth under Hartley, and a lot of them did well in a few organizations). I would be happy with that, but without the 'behind the scenes stuff'.


The focus of the coach should be on development. It can't be right now as there is no 'rebuild announcement' yet, but at some point this season, I expect the gears to shift.


Huska is in his 2nd season as a head coach in the NHL. Has he been that awful that he needs to be fired? I disagree with any assertion that he has been that awful. I don't think the best environment for the kids to develop in was the pond-hockey style that the Oilers used to usher in Hall and Eberle.


The best coach for 'now' is a coach who is willing to develop players. That should be the focus here shortly I imagine. Huska will show us whether he deserves another extension or not in these next couple of years. Up until this point, I don't agree that he has shown us that the Flames are better off finding another coach right now.

Holy smokes man, don't talk sense into the rioting masses. lol.

This is the exact reasonable and rational take I have.

But it is entertaining to see the masses bring out the torches. Makes for an even more entertaining season, but alot of it is bordering on HF / Coiler talk

[Bonded]

Originally Posted by Bingo

Seriously?

So you fire him instead and hire another guy keeping the Flame's coaching carousel going around, and ditching a guy that got the team further than you planned with a roster that you ripped apart for futures?

Just a head shaker for me.

The team overachieved in spite of him last year and not because of him, isn't that obvious...


Now this year is all his fault and he is destroying the very fabric and core of the same roster as last year

[Erick Estrada]

The fire Huska thing is definitely one of the stranger things I've seen at CP over the decades. Maybe if we rewind three years where the team had some modest expectations you could start finger pointing but I'm not exactly clear on what some fans are expecting from this roster? Maybe they could have won a few more games and be 5-7-2, battling with the Canucks for 2nd last in the conference but this roster is really bad and the current record is kind of what most would expect from possibly the least talented roster in the NHL.

Huska was never my pick as head coach as I was on the Mitch Love bandwagon but I have a hard time overly critiquing what he's done with a roster full of no-name players and vets near the end of their career. Just months ago he received Jack Adams votes last season for getting the team to overachieve so it's strange to see pitchforks come out a month into the season like this.

[Wolven]

Originally Posted by manwiches

Holy smokes man, don't talk sense into the rioting masses. lol.

This is the exact reasonable and rational take I have.

But it is entertaining to see the masses bring out the torches. Makes for an even more entertaining season, but alot of it is bordering on HF / Coiler talk

Ya, it is confusing. We want a coach to tank the season but we are complaining that the losing is not fun enough?

Losing isn't fun. Winning is fun. Some of the posters here are asking for the impossible: The fun of winning without actually winning.

Anyway, I am fine with continuing with Huska. Even if he does not have a winning formula, I do trust him to develop the young players responsibly. The next coach will benefit greatly from the work Huska is putting into Coronato, Bahl, Parekh, Zary, Wolf, etc. become better NHLers.

[Bingo]

Originally Posted by Bonded

The team overachieved in spite of him last year and not because of him, isn't that obvious...


Now this year is all his fault and he is destroying the very fabric and core of the same roster as last year

LOL no it's not obvious.

I said it on the weekend ... this team (in my opinion) has 5 top roster players leaving them 4 forwards and 2.5 D short of a competing roster.

That's just my opinion.

Do you see your extremes? Everything good last year - nothing to do with him. Everything bad this year - ALL his fault.

[Bingo]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

The fire Huska thing is definitely one of the stranger things I've seen at CP over the decades. Maybe if we rewind three years where the team had some modest expectations you could start finger pointing but I'm not exactly clear on what some fans are expecting from this roster? Maybe they could have won a few more games and be 5-7-2, battling with the Canucks for 2nd last in the conference but this roster is really bad and the current record is kind of what most would expect from possibly the least talented roster in the NHL.

Huska was never my pick as head coach as I was on the Mitch Love bandwagon but I have a hard time overly critiquing what he's done with a roster full of no-name players and vets near the end of their career. Just months ago he received Jack Adams votes last season for getting the team to overachieve so it's strange to see pitchforks come out a month into the season like this.

Agreed.

I'm not a Huska supporter. But you end up defending the guy when faced with the extremely over stated negative opinions of the guy.

[fotze2]

I think this is the first time in CP history Bingo has not been a tow the line coach supporter. It's really something to behold.

Maybe we are finally tanking for the rebuild attempt. It's beautiful.

[Bonded]

Originally Posted by Bingo

LOL no it's not obvious.

I said it on the weekend ... this team (in my opinion) has 5 top roster players leaving them 4 forwards and 2.5 D short of a competing roster.

That's just my opinion.

Do you see your extremes? Everything good last year - nothing to do with him. Everything bad this year - ALL his fault.

Should have used greentext, I agree with you haha

[Jason14h]

Originally Posted by Bingo

LOL no it's not obvious.

I said it on the weekend ... this team (in my opinion) has 5 top roster players leaving them 4 forwards and 2.5 D short of a competing roster.

That's just my opinion.

Do you see your extremes? Everything good last year - nothing to do with him. Everything bad this year - ALL his fault.

I read the post as sarcastic…am I losing it ? No no , it’s the children who are wrong

[Bingo]

Originally Posted by Bonded

Should have used greentext, I agree with you haha

Oh sorry man.

My bad.

[Royle9]

The better question is who right now would even be available?

Torts - lol
Woodcroft - no thx
Gallant - Maybe? I always liked him as Coach personally
Eakins - not a chance
Bowness - Maybe?

Then there's the guys that "could coach" and are seen as upcoming possibilities:

Dominique Ducharme
Jeff Halpern
Todd Nelson
Mike Bellucci
Pat Ferschweiler
Pascal Vincent
Mitch Love - prob not

Pretty thin for a mid year shuffle anyway.