NHL coaches seem to be on shorter leashes than most other sports. On average, a coach can get three or four years to try to turn a bad team around. A winning team could dump their coach after a few seasons if they can't "get over the hump" or return to championship form. It's rare to see a coach like Mike Tomlin or Jon Cooper stay in one place.
It wasn't until mid-June that the Flyers made their last coaching decision. It was only a few weeks before the draft. Hopefully, this time, it doesn't take as long. After all, the Rangers already took one candidate off the board.
If we are looking at guys who don't necessarily have ties to the Flyers organization and want to bring in some new ideas, there is an intriguing candidate. Former Oilers head coach Jay Woodcroft is hoping to get back behind the bench. Maybe the Flyers should give him a chance.
Why He Should Be The Flyers' Next Coach
He's a winner. In his first season, he took the Oilers to the Conference Finals and would fall to the eventual Cup-winning Colorado Avalanche. The next year, his Oilers, usually an underachieving squad, fell to Vegas. Then, after 13 games, he was let go.
Maybe he's learned something from that. After all, he coached two of the game's best in Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. He could potentially have a lot of fun with a lineup led by Travis Konecny, Matvei Michkov, Noah Cates, Bobby Brink, Owen Tippett, and Tyson Foerster. Maybe he can unleash them and bring pain and suffering to the goalies of the Metropolitan Division.
He's also 48. To me, that tells me he is hungry and has his finger on the pulse of newer trends in the sport. That may give him an advantage over some of the other coaching candidates who are older than him. Plus, not being from the Flyers, he won't come in here stuck in the "Flyers Hockey" mentality.
Why He Shouldn't Be The Flyers' Next Coach
Why was he fired so quickly by Edmonton? He had success in his first two seasons. Why were they so quick to pull the trigger on him?
According to the AP, it was because he didn't "correct his players" or "bench them" when necessary. Sounds like the anti-Tortorella if you ask me. Did he lose the locker room? Did they not respect him? Was he too close to them? It's hard to say.
We'll never know what happened in Edmonton. The fact is that for years, the Oilers have had a very talented roster. For years, they can't quite reach the Hockey Holy Land (sounds familiar?). How much of that is the coach and how much of that is the players fault? Not sure. Maybe a bit of both.
Final Analysis
A few years ago, the Flyers had a coach named Craig Berube. He lasted two years in Philly with a talented roster. But after missing the playoffs in his second season, he was fired. A few years later, he arrived in St. Louis and won the Stanley Cup in his first year with the Blues. Right now, he is guiding the Maple Leafs in a powerful playoff run.
Did the Flyers give up on Berube too early? Maybe. Did the Oilers give up too soon on Woodcroft? Unclear. I guess it depends on what happened behind closed doors. If the Flyers are interested in him, they should do their due diligence and find out what he brings to the table and find out the truth about his dismissal. I'd at least be interested in hearing what he would differently with this team. Is he the best option? Not sure. At the very least, he's worth investigating.