[News Roundup] Flames head coach search. Friedman: Huska is the leading contender - Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community

sureLoss · 05-23-2023, 10:03 PM

From Friedman:
https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article...ffice-changes/

Quote:

8. Calgary must decide on Mitch Love. When you’ve won the AHL Coach of the Year Award two seasons in a row, an organization is pretty much put on the spot to indicate if it considers you NHL material or not. Same goes for Ryan Huska and Kirk Muller. (Muller, I believe has been interviewed in Columbus and one other team.)

Other names to consider here: Andrew Brunette’s history with Jonathan Huberdeau is intriguing; Gerard Gallant, Travis Green (who I could also see with Anaheim), Marc Savard (as mentioned by Jeff Marek) and Alex Tanguay. Conroy and Jarome Iginla —who eventually will join the organization — think very highly of Tanguay. The Flames want to modernize the way they attack.

9. I also think the Flames will, at least, reach out to Peter Laviolette to gauge his interest.

From TSN:

https://twitter.com/user/status/1661143031058407424

Mr.Coffee · 05-23-2023, 10:05 PM

From what I know of all those names, I'm kind of good with all of them to be honest.

dammage79 · 05-23-2023, 10:09 PM

Don't think gallant gets the job. He's in the same boat as Sutter in my estimation.

My ideal offseason has always been :
Sutter gone
Conny GM
Love as HC
Iggy assistant coach.

So far 2 for 4. Make it 3 for 4 and I'm happy. Perhaps Tangs replaces Muller as well, that'd be a cool swap.

sch19lks · 05-23-2023, 10:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dammage79

Don't think gallant gets the job. He's in the same boat as Sutter in my estimation.

My ideal offseason has always been :
Sutter gone
Conny GM
Love as HC
Iggy assistant coach.

So far 2 for 4. Make it 3 for 4 and I'm happy. Perhaps Tangs replaces Muller as well, that'd be a cool swap.

Iggy won’t happen until next offseason if he’s going to coach. He’s coaching another year in Kelowna prep

dammage79 · 05-23-2023, 10:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sch19lks

Iggy won’t happen until next offseason if he’s going to coach. He’s coaching another year in Kelowna prep

I know, that's why 3 for 4 is the sweet spot. But binging in Tanguay to work with love would be a very very good compromise

sch19lks · 05-23-2023, 10:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dammage79

I know, that's why 3 for 4 is the sweet spot. But binging in Tanguay to work with love would be a very very good compromise

It’s interesting to speculate on. Does Iggy even wanna coach? Or is he more looking to be on the management side? It’ll be interesting to see how this all unfolds

DeluxeMoustache · 05-23-2023, 10:17 PM

Gallant has a proven shelf life of 2.x years

Hard pass

Strange Brew · 05-23-2023, 10:40 PM

I have no issue with Gallant. The average nhl head coach tenure is what, 2.4 years? At least Gallant seems to win while he is with a team.

dissentowner · 05-23-2023, 10:45 PM

I really want Andrew Brunette as the head coach of this team. I think he is a perfect fit for the style this team should be playing to get the most out of this lineup. If he doesn't want the job my next choice would be Tanguay, another guy who I think would install the right type of upbeat system. I think it would be the wrong time to promote Love to HC, I think he definitely should be ab assistant here though. Let him get his feet wet that way first. I am not a Huska fan but I will admit he seems to do well as an assistant in charge of PK and defence, he just has no mind for the offensive part of the game and I think you would see a Geoff Ward style of offence under him which in no way fits this group. I would actually even go Travis Green ahead of both Love and Huska for HC, I think he got a pretty raw deal in Vancouver.
To me though if Andrew Brunette wants the job it is an absolute no brainer fit for this roster and the way Conroy wants the team to be creative in the offensive zone.

DeluxeMoustache · 05-23-2023, 10:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Strange Brew

I have no issue with Gallant. The average nhl head coach tenure is what, 2.4 years? At least Gallant seems to win while he is with a team.

I really could not view it more differently

One good season and burns everyone out. I saw one good year with Darryl and a horrible second year. I enjoyed it very little, but the players seemingly enjoyed it even less.

Bednar is at 7 years. Cooper at 11

No way the team should set the bar at average and look at a guy with 4 stops, none actually reaching 3 full years

Hard pass

Pickle Juice · 05-23-2023, 11:01 PM

I’m excited just as much as anyone hearing the names Iginla and Tanguay but as someone that has learned this the hard way bringing your friends and family to work with you is not a recipe for good things to come in my opinion.

Like I said I really am excited to hear all the former legends being discussed but I really hope I’m wrong on this one.

DoubleK · 05-23-2023, 11:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Strange Brew

I have no issue with Gallant. The average nhl head coach tenure is what, 2.4 years? At least Gallant seems to win while he is with a team.

I'll take 2 years of Gallant. The team as currently constructed has no window. Mine as well get the coach that can squeeze the maximum out of the current roster.

RedHawk12 · 05-23-2023, 11:38 PM

Andrew Brunette as HC with Tanguay and Love as assistants would be a good staff. Move on from Muller and Huska.

btimbit · 05-24-2023, 12:06 AM

I feel like they just have to go with Love, or someone else will.

Reggie Dunlop · 05-24-2023, 12:28 AM

Love is good.
Love can be strong.
Gotta get right back to where we started from.

FlamesAddiction · 05-24-2023, 01:08 AM

I just read several stories about Gallant and what led to him being fired.

Florida:

It was kind of like the Hartley situation in Calgary from the sounds of it. He was a hire left over from the previous regime and they let him stay on when the new regime took over. Gallant led the Panthers to a fantastic record, so even though they wanted to bring in their own guy after, they had trouble justifying firing him. They waited until the team was struggling a bit and fired him early in the next season. The reason the Panthers gave was "inconsistent performances and philosophical differences between the GM and coach". It was believed that the Panthers management wanted to move in a direction that emphasized analytics and Gallant was resistant and stubborn to adopt it.

Vegas:

After another lights out season, he was canned a little more than half way into the follow-up season as soon as the team struggled. They had lost 4 in a row and found themselves out of a playoff spot by a couple of points. Lot's of time left in the season to make up for it, but Vegas used it as an excuse to get rid of him. The reason they gave was that it was team performance, but rumours were abound that Vegas was annoyed by his stubbornness and deployment choices.

New York:

It was fairly common knowledge that Gallant and Drury butted heads a lot, and again, it sounds like stubbornness and deployment choices played a big role.

One thing about Gallant is that he admits he is stubborn and doesn't hold back his opinions. I really don't think this is the kind of coach a first time GM just starting should be hiring. Gallant could be a really nice guy outside of the rink and no doubt he is a good coach in a lot of ways, but it sounds like he is difficult to get along with and isn't willing to listen to others. I just can't imagine that the Flames would be seriously considering it. I really just want to believe that this is Gallant's reps putting rumours out there to try and garner interest. Gallant did say that he was willing to listen to any offers no matter where.

Sandman · 05-24-2023, 02:02 AM

I think Gallant is hard to get along with for whoever is GM. I can't see Savard, Iggy, or Tanguay having enough experience to be NHL head coaches- it's quite different to play vs, coach, IMO.

dissentowner · 05-24-2023, 03:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by btimbit

I feel like they just have to go with Love, or someone else will.

Like where? Columbus is close with Laviolette. If the Leafs make a coaching change it will be a vet. I don't see any current spot open for Love. If the Flames brass determines he is the best fit for this team they should give him the job. If he isn't and someone else is interested in him that is fine, there is always plenty of good young coaches coming up anyhow. I still think Love will be an assistant coach at the NHL level before he gets a HC gig.

ForeverFlameFan · 05-24-2023, 06:22 AM

You can't go wrong with a lot of those names mentioned. I trust Conroy and his counterparts in finding the right coach for this team. If I were to choose, it would be Love. Lots of these guys could be available in a few years, but Love won't be. If we don't give him a shot someone else will. And I would hate for another "shoulda coulda woulda" scenario.

Erick Estrada · 05-24-2023, 06:44 AM

I like them interviewing Gallant just on the basis that he's been pretty successful at his stops so it never hurts to pick his brain. However it appears he's pretty stubborn and that's a quality that the Flames locker room didn't seem to appreciate in the last coach so it wouldn't make sense as a hire coming off the heels of Sutter. Not a fan of Travis Green as the Canucks couldn't play a lick of defense during his tenure. May as well kick the tires on Brunette and see his vision of how he could turn around Huberdeau and visions for the rest of the roster. I'm not so sure of Tangs as the Wings powerplay was kind of middling under him and it just seems a little too fast tracked to me. Savard seems more accomplished as he's done a good job with the Spitfires.

To me Love still looks like the best candidate as it seems like it's time for him to get a shot in the NHL as the AHL path unearthed Bednar, Cooper, Boudreau, Babcock, etc. Heck even little Opie in Edmonton came from the AHL.