What do you do with the coaching position?

[redforever]

Originally Posted by badradio

Ward will be a blip in the Flames history books... Should hire someone now, but I know they won’t. Also, you don’t fire a guy like Peters and hire Sutter or Babs... Unfortunate, because I think it’s what the team needs. Gallant would be my first choice. IMO firing Hartley and hiring the bad GG was the worst move Tre ever made and set this organization back years.

This

[Corral]

Originally Posted by Flames Draft Watcher

Well that's one way to view it (the jaded way I guess)

The other way to view it as the anybody coming is gets to coach a team that is mostly unchanged from best in the west in 2018-19 and that has tremendous young talent (Tkachuk, Monahan, Gaudreau, Mangiapane, Dube, Valimaki, Andersson, Hanifin, Kylington) and some good veterans (Backlund, Gio, Ryan). Ownership is seen as very stable as well and management has been quite stable of the last number of years

So while you're grasping to find reasons why coaches will turn us down, there's plenty of obvious reasons as to why the Flames would be a very attractive place to coach. I'm sure there are some coaches that wouldn't want to come here. But overall I would think its a quite attractive destination for some given the roster composition and the youth of the core. This team will be competitive for many years to come.

I’d like to believe you. However this promising young core has yet to attract that star coach you have envisioned here. I’m just tired of blaming the coaching staff. So I could really care less if they stick with ward. Real star players still get it done and make the coaching look stellar at the same time

[Dajazz]

Originally Posted by badradio

Ward will be a blip in the Flames history books... Should hire someone now, but I know they won’t. Also, you don’t fire a guy like Peters and hire Sutter or Babs... Unfortunate, because I think it’s what the team needs. Gallant would be my first choice. IMO firing Hartley and hiring the bad GG was the worst move Tre ever made and set this organization back years.

Well, several players have gone on record saying he was a full blown psychopath so I’m not so sure. I liked Bob a lot, but the stories coming our (like bullying Baertchi to a point when the kid was crying in the locker room) put a different light on his tenure here.

[blender]

I think moving on from Hartley was inevitable and necessary but the GG hire was a bad move.

[ForeverFlameFan]

Hire a coach with 5+ HC experience and with playoff success. Laviolette would be my ideal candidate.

[dino7c]

See where Ward takes this team this season before making any decisions

Flames have a really good record since he took over and results are what matters

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by Dajazz

Well, several players have gone on record saying he was a full blown psychopath so I’m not so sure. I liked Bob a lot, but the stories coming our (like bullying Baertchi to a point when the kid was crying in the locker room) put a different light on his tenure here.

And what always seemed offputting to me was that Hartley was Mr. Jovial in interviews and press conferences, while apparently being a hard ass with the players. I distrust someone who is phoney like that. I can handle a tough coach like Sutter more, because you know that he’s roughly the same with players as he is publicly. Same with, say, Torts.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by dino7c

See where Ward takes this team this season before making any decisions

Flames have a really good record since he took over and results are what matters

It is not just about results. It is also about how the team plays. The large discrepancy in the home and road records is mystifying, the coaches often make baffling lineup decisions, and while the Flames boast the 12th-best record since Peters left the bench there is a strong sense that they could be even better with better coaching.

[Toonage]

I hope when Ward is let go he's surprised and yells "hey, hey time out"

Then everyone pauses for a second, then they laugh. Then he leaves.

[Monahammer]

I think Laviolette should be number 1, Bruce Boudreau number 2, and Gallant a close 3.

Boudreau over Gallant because Boudreau has a proven record of getting the most out of players, or waking them up. I think our group could use some of that.

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by blender

I think moving on from Hartley was inevitable and necessary but the GG hire was a bad move.

The GG hire annoys me the most because there was a game of coaching musical chairs going on and when the music stopped, the Flames were left standing alone. It seemed like a panic move when everyone else on the list was snapped up. I doubt GG was even in the top 5 list of coaches they wanted at the time.

I have nothing against Ward, but I would entertain the idea of bringing in Gallant.

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by Strange Brew

I think that is very, very unlikely. That would have been a delicate argument for the Flames to make given these things occurred prior to him being under contract with the club. No doubt both sides signed confidentiality agreements and releases, but IMO I doubt he would have given up on two years of pay so quickly.

It’s delicate, I suppose, but he would also have the risk of a public trial. I’ve dealt with Edwards in legal situations and he presses every advantage. He’s aggressive. If they gave him contract value there would have been zero delay (and if you recall there was about a week or two of negotiations). He definitely got less than two years.

[Itse]

Originally Posted by Textcritic

It is not just about results. It is also about how the team plays. The large discrepancy in the home and road records is mystifying, the coaches often make baffling lineup decisions, and while the Flames boast the 12th-best record since Peters left the bench there is a strong sense that they could be even better with better coaching.

A bad home record is to me a huge warning sign that there might be a problem with coaching.

If a coach can't take advantage of home ice, he's likely not very good.

Ward is currently the main reason why I have little faith in the Flames playoff chances. I think he's going to get schooled by his opposite number, just like Peters and Gulutzan got schooled.

Our season series against the Oilers is a good example of how I see a playoff series playing out, with Flames best game being their first and each game tilting the tables more towards the opposition.

The Oilers roster is worse than ours, but they're ahead of us in the standings because they have a much better, more experienced head coach.

[JBR]

Ward needs to take this team past Round 1 to keep his job, IMO.

[dissentowner]

Originally Posted by JBR

Ward needs to take this team past Round 1 to keep his job, IMO.

That is where I am torn. I want the team to get past rnd 1 but I would rather they didn't if it means Ward gets the interim tag removed. We need a real coach with a real system to have a real chance at winning a SC.

[Abatedmean]

Originally Posted by dissentowner

That is where I am torn. I want the team to get past rnd 1 but I would rather they didn't if it means Ward gets the interim tag removed. We need a real coach with a real system to have a real chance at winning a SC.

Which is sad. You should be able to have faith in your GM to make the right call. Just because they do good this offseason could potentially keep them from doing great in the future with a better coach.

[Erick Estrada]

Originally Posted by dissentowner

That is where I am torn. I want the team to get past rnd 1 but I would rather they didn't if it means Ward gets the interim tag removed. We need a real coach with a real system to have a real chance at winning a SC.

I will still of course hope for winning in the playoffs but the upside of Treliving removing the interim tag is that it will probably be the final nail in the coffin for him as he's not likely to survive another bad coaching hire.