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No room for sentiment, Ted Nolan fired. Plus 2014-15 Team Stats--Final |
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"It was a matter of when, not if," a colleague told me last night after Sabres head coach Ted Nolan was fired by GM Tim Murray. Murray also fired assistant coach Danny Flynn and announced that he did not renew the contracts of assistant coaches Bryan Trottier and Tom Coolen. Goalie coach Arturs Irbe has one year left on his contract and is still with the club.
As big a fan as I was of Nolan and the work he did this season, Murray is on a mission. When he stepped to the podium to announce the changes, he was cold and business-like, the same way he's been publically after making a number of franchise-altering decisions. From owner Terry Pegula on down, the goal is the Stanley Cup with Murray in charge of building a championship team and he's not fooling around. There's no room for sentimentality in all of this quest despite Sgt. Ted throwing himself and his career on a hand grenade for the Buffalo Sabres organization. From Ryan Miller to Tyler Myers to Nolan and on to the next coaching staff, Murray is all-in on his vision. And he should be commended for it.
That being said, although it's the correct move for the franchise moving forward, it's still a raw deal.
Murray said at the presser yesterday that he put the coach in a tough position then thanked Nolan and his staff "for showing up to the rink everyday with a good attitude and working hard in less than ideal circumstances." The circumstances Murray alluded to included the purging of nearly every ounce of talent--including two solid goaltenders and a burgeoning superstar in Myers--for an injured top-line player, late round draft picks in 2016 and 2017 and a pair of goalies who, at the time of their acquisition, looked to be the worst goalie duo in the NHL.
It was a team constructed to fail and the whole league knew it.
Nolan did a masterful job, however, of keeping up appearances and instilling a sense of pride in his charges. Throughout the season, much to the dismay of some in the media and a vocal majority of the fan-base, Nolan would have this rag-tag group playing the game with a sense of purpose. He had mentioned often times that each player always had something to play for--their livelihoods--either with the Sabres or some other NHL organization.
Murray had said he came to the ultimate conclusion to fire Nolan after the final evaluation phase, which was "six hours of interviews with the players [on Sunday] and that this was the culmination of the evaluation." But Murray also said that, "every player, to a man, believes Ted Nolan is a good man and they were sure to tell me that."
There were numerous personnel changes over the course of Nolan's second stint in Buffalo, all to purge talent and finish at the bottom. Which is all well and good as Murray said more than once "Our time is the future." A good chunk of that future hit the ice often this season as Zemgus Girgensons, Rasmus Ristolainen and Nikita Zadorov all stuck with the big club. Johan Larsson and Mikhail Grigorenko yo-yo'd between Buffalo and Rochester until after the trade deadline. That future was in Nolan's hands. How he handled the youngins should have been a big part of the evaluation process.
"I think some of our [players] took strides and others took less strides," said Murray when asked if he was happy with how the young guys were developing. '"I thought Ristolainen, despite his bad stretches and plus-minus, I thought he took steps. I think he still has a ways to go for what I envision, but I have high expectations for young guys."
Of the group of five mentioned above, it could be said that Girgensons and Larsson could be added to those who took strides and some would say that they'd made great strides in their development this season. The other two, Grigorenko and Zadorov, not so much.
We all know the sturggles Grigorenko has gone through since being drafted then thrown into the fire and if you don't know the story of Zadorov, from camp until the end of the season, read up on it.
Zadorov was a bit of a problem child this season with his desire to play in the NHL superseding what was best for him in the developmental process. He missed a flight after the All-Star break and was late for a meeting another time which drew the ire of Nolan and caused the young d-man to be suspended for three games. Murray, to his credit, never intervened, but he might not have been too thrilled with disciplining a young player in that fashion.
"I never went down and tried to micromanage [Nolan]," said Murray. "I'm not going to question his coaching decision here, in front of [the media]. Young players make mistakes so it's how you handle those mistakes. This does not pertain to Teddy at all. [Zadorov] missed a meeting and he sat for three games. That's Ted's prerogative. Ted used examples from the past that he thought helped certain players. Whether I agree with that 100% or not, that was his call."
Zadorov's wounds from these events are self-inflicted and even Murray said that the kid has a lot of maturing to do. "I had a long talk with him about maturing and growing up," said Murray. "About, when you do certain things your teammates lose respect for you and when you do certain things your coaching staff might lose respect for you.
"A big part of our interview today was me putting the onus on him to grow up. To get better. To get fitter. To become a man."
In effect, it's a difference between being men, or acting like men, as opposed to being like a child. Larsson is a perfect example of becoming a man in the process as he went from whining about being sent down to working his way up to, and producing on, the top line.
And it wasn't the first time Nolan told a player to man up and have him respond.
Veteran forward Chris Stewart got off to an atrocious start and forgot how to work. Nolan benched him for doing "pirouettes" on the ice which ticked Stewart off to no end.
“I’m not happy about it,” Stewart said at the time. “I don’t agree with being a healthy scratch. But you take it on the chin like a man. I’m happy the boys got the win. That was a big two points. I put the work boots on and get ready for the next time I’m in the lineup.”
He had three goals and one assist in 27 games until that point. From December 11 until he was traded to Minnesota at the traded deadline, he had eight goals and 13 assists in 34 games. He finished the season with three goals and eight assists in 20 games for the Wild.
Sabres forward Tyler Ennis has never looked better. He hit the 20-goal mark for the third time in his career and seems to have found a home on the wing. He attributes it to Nolan and how he recongnized what made the diminutive winger click. "[Nolan's] smart in that he understands what guys can do and what guys can’t do," said Ennis last week. "In the past, I really haven’t been allowed to try things, so I’ve loved it [under Nolan]. I think you need to let certain guys play.”
Nolan's a player's coach and a motivator, which Ennis elaborated upon. "He’s well-liked. I think the guys play for him, they play hard for him. He’s been incredible for me. He’s really good at getting everything out of every guy. He’s helped me a lot. He puts fire into guys, and I think when people play with fire, you get the most out of each guy.”
All in all, Nolan did more good than harm, especially when he put the onus on players to be men. Those of the mature variety responded, the whiners did not. And he completed a four-year mission for the organization, one which culminated with a 30th place finish and a top-two pick int his year's draft. He also protected his players and his boss from relentless media scrutiny over tanking as well as taking the heat from Sabres fans and the local media who were ready to string him up for allowing a natural, competitive spirit to emanate from the rink.
And for that he got canned.
Like my colleague said, "it wasn't a matter of if." One could easily conclude that this was in the plans from the get-go. Murray is the Sabres GM who's in charge of building a championship team and it makes sense that he'd want to surround himself with people who are more in-step with his philosophies. Nolan wasn't "the perfect fit" he was looking for.
As Sabres fans, we need to defer to Murray and if you want a harbinger of things to come, look no further than the Ottawa Senators. Murray was integral in building that team when he was in Ottawa as AGM. They're a skilled group of players with tons of character and intestinal fortitude who play the game right.
Murray's bringing that to Buffalo.
Where it all ends up is yet to be determined. It could be a rousing success or a disaster or any point in between. Fact is, no matter what happens, Murray himself manned up and is putting everything on himself and there's no room for sentiment when you do that.
For that Murray should be fully commended.
Buffalo Sabres Team Stats:
Wins
--October: 2 (29th)...(NHL Leader--ANA, 9)
--November: 8 (27th)...(NYI, 17)
--December: 14 (T-24th)...(CHI, 25)
--January: 14 (29th)...(ANA, 32)
--February: 19 (29th)...(NSH, 41)
--March: 21 (30th)...(ANA, 49)
--Final: 23 (30th)...(NYR, 53)
--2013-14: 21 (30th)...(BOS, 54)
Points
--October: 5 (29th)...(ANA, 18)
--November: 18 (27th)...(NYI, 34)
--December: 31 (28th)...(ANA, 54)
--January: 31 (30th)...(ANA, 70)
--February: 43 (30th)...(NSH, 89)
--March: 50 (30th)...ANA, 105)
--Final: 54 (30th)...(NYR, 113)
--2013-14: 52 (30th)...(BOS, 117)
Points Percentage
--October: .227 (29th)...(MTL, .773)
--November: .375 (27th)...(PIT, .739)
--December: .408 (28th)...(NSH, .708)
--January: .310 (30th)...(NSH, .708)
--February: .341 (30th)...(NSH, .706)
--March: .329 (30th)...(NYR, .678)
--Final: .329 (30th)...(NYR, .689)
--2013-14: .317 (30th)...(BOS, 713)
Atlantic Division Standing
--October: 8th...(MTL)
--November: 8th...(TBL)
--December: 8th...(TBL)
--January: 8th...(TBL)
--February: 8th...(MTL)
--March: 8th...(MTL)
--Final: 8th...(MTL)
--2013-14: 8th...(BOS)
Eastern Conference Standing
--October: 16th...(MTL)
--November: 14th (PIT)
--December: 14th (TBL)
--January: 16th (TBL)
--February: 16th (MTL)
--March: 16th (NYR)
--Final: 16th (NYR)
--2013-14: 16th (BOS)
League Standing
--October: 29th...(ANA)
--November: 27th..(PIT)
--December: 28th...(ANA)
--January: 30th...(ANA)
--February: 30th...(NSH)
--March: 30th...(ANA)
--Final: 30th...(NYR)
--2013-14: 30th...(BOS)
Goal Differential
--October: -24
--November: -33...(PIT, +26)
--December: -52...(CHI, +39)
--January: -85...(CHI, +40)
--February: -89...(TBL, +40)
--March: -107...(NYR, +52)
--Final: -113...(NYR, +60)
--2013-14: -91...(BOS +84)
Goals/Game
--October: 1.09 (30th)...(PIT, 4.00)
--November: 1.67 (30th)...(TBL, 3.50)
--December: 1.84 (30th)...(TOR, 3.29)
--January: 1.76 (30th)...(TBL, 3.22)
--February: 1.84 (30th)...(TBL, 3.25)
--March: 1.84 (30th)...(TBL, 3.18)
--Final: 1.87 (30th)...(TBL, 3.16)
--2013-14: 1.83 (30th)...(ANA, 3.21)
Shots/Game
--October: 21.2 (30th)...(CHI, 38.1)
--November: 22.3 (30th)...(CHI, 36.1)
--December: 23.2 (30th)...(CHI, 35.4)
--January: 22.9 (30th)...(CHI, 35.1)
--February: 22.9 (30th)...(CHI, 34.3)
--March: 23.9 (30th)...(CHI, 33.9)
--Final: 24.2 (30th)...(CHI, 33.9)
--2013-14: 26.3 (30th)...(SJS, 34.8)
Goals-against/Game
--October: 3.27 (21st)...(ANA, 1.83)
--November: 3.12 (27th)...(NSH, 1.96)
--December: 3.34 (29th)...(CHI, 2.08)
--January: 3.56 (30th)...(MTL, 2.23)
--February: 3.32 (29th)...(MTL, 2.14)
--March: 3.29 (30th)...(MTL, 2.22)
--Final: 3.28 (29th)...(MTL, 2.24)
--2013-14: 2.96 (25th)...(LAK, 2.05)
Shots against/Game
--October: 36.7 (30th)...(MIN, 23.2)
--November: 36.5 (30th)...(MIN, 25.8)
--December: 35.4 (30th)...(MIN, 26.5)
--January: 35.0 (30th)...(MIN, 26.9)
--February: 35.3 (30th)...(MIN, 26.8)
--March: 35.4 (30th)...(STL, 27.2)
--Final: 35.6 (30th)...(LAK, 27.0)
--2013-14: 34.3 (28th)...(NJD, 25.5)
Powerplay
--October: 2.9% (29th)...(PIT, 39.5)
--November: 7.2 (30th)...(PIT, 31.6)
--December: 9.4 (30th)...(CLB, 24.4)
--January: 11.4 (30th)...(DET, 25.6)
--February: 11.5 (30th)...(DET, 25.0)
--March: 12.9 (30th)...(WSH, 24.4)
--Final: 13.4 (30th)...(WSH, 25.3)
--2013-14: 14.1 (29th)...(PIT, 23.4)
Penalty Kill
--October: 85.4% (9th)...(DET, 94.1)
--November: 77.0 (25th)...(CHI, 91.3)
--December: 76.7 (27th)...(CHI, 90.5)
--January: 73.7 (29th)...(CHI, 87.6)
--February: 75.1 (29th)...(CAR, 88.2)
--March: 74.5 (30th)...(MIN, 87.1)
--Final: 75.1 (30th)...(MIN, 86.3)
--2013-14: 81.4 (20th)...(NJD, 86.4)
Faceoff Percentage
--October: 41.4 (30th)...(CAR, 54.4)
--November: 41.0 (30th)...(MTL, 55.9)
--December: 44.5 (30th)...(DET, 55.1)
--January: 45.2 (30th)...(STL, 54.0)
--February: 45.5 (30th)...(BOS, 53.8)
--March: 45.2 (30th)...(STL, 53.6)
--Final: 44.9 (30th)...(BOS, 53.6)
--2013-14: 46.8 (29th)...(NSH, 53.1)
--Bottom five teams in the league, their point total and their records for the month.
January:
26. Columbus Blue Jackets, 45 points; 5-8-0
27. Carolina Hurricanes, 40; 7-3-2
28. Arizona Coyotes, 40; 3-7-2
29. Edmonton Oilers, 35; 5-6-1
30. Buffalo Sabres, 31; 0-12-0
Of note: The Toronto Maple Leafs are in 24th place with 48 points. They finished the month of January with a 1-11-1 record. After beating Columbus for their lone win of the month on January 9th, the Leafs proceeded to finish the month with an 0-8-1 record.
February:
26. Carolina, 55 points; 7-4-1
27. Toronto, 55, 3-7-1
28. Arizona, 47, 3-10-1
29. Edmonton, 46, 5-7-1
30. Buffalo, 43, 5-6-2
Of Note: The Arizona Coyotes are barreling to the bottom of the league thanks to a nine game, and counting, losing streak. Last night they just traded Antoine Vermette to Chicago for futures. Edmonton lost Taylor Hall on Feb. 9 and he'll be out for at least another two weeks. In his absence the Oilers are 3-6-0. The "Center of the Hockey Universe" is all-in on a rebuild and "Leafs Nation" is now in full-fledged tank mode having gone 4-18-2 for 2015, easily the worst record of any team in the league.
March:
26. Carolina, 67 points, 4-7-4
27. Toronto, 64, 4-10-1
28. Edmonton, 59, 5-5-3
29. Arizona, 54, 3-10-1
30. Buffalo, 50, 2-8-3
Of Note: Buffalo and Arizona met twice this month. Arizona won the first game at Buffalo in OT, 4-3. The Sabres defeated the 'Yotes in Arizona 4-1 this past Monday. Although Toronto has been barreling towards the bottom with an 8-28-5 record this calendar year, chances are that they'll finish right where they are in 27th place.
April:
26. Carolina, 71 points, 2-4-0
27. Toronto, 68, 1-2-2
28. Edmonton, 62, 1-4-1
29. Arizona, 56, 1-4-0
30. Buffalo, 54, 2-4-0
One final note on Murray's presser concerning the firing of Ted Nolan.
Said Murray, "I've said all along I want to improve this team everyday and today I came to the decision that a change may help us improve."
As you look at the 2015 calendar year, it's a good thing that Nolan didn't improve everyday. He may have gotten fired for finishing 24th instead of the desired 30th.
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