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The NEXT GREAT SABRES BLOGGER Round 2: HANK |
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Eighth Time’s the Charm
by Hank
There is not currently a “Help Wanted” sign planted in front of Key Bank Center following the
dismissal of Ralph Krueger. Nonetheless, the Sabres are currently without a permanent head coach following 12 straight losses under Krueger that could best be described as brutal, unwatchable, and infuriating. After Krueger’s synergistic, incoherent corporate-speak wore thin on players, fans and media, the Sabres conditionally gave the coaching reigns to Don Granato for him to take over in an interim capacity. What happens to permanently fill that vacancy will likely be decided following the conclusion of the Sabres season on May 8th. If the Sabres elect not to make him head coach for the 2021-2022 season, they will be looking for their eighth coach in the last 10 years. Good times. But this article is not a rehashing of the golden years of Ron “Garden Gloves” Rolston, Disco Dan Bylsma and Thrill Housley. No sir. Onward we go to discuss potential candidates to be the next Sabres head coach. Below is a synopsis of three possible candidate qualifications, one reason each could be selected and a comparable head coach.
The first candidate is none other than Sabres interim coach Don Granato. Granato has followed
a linear, upward trajectory though the coaching ranks. He has worked his way up from the USHL, ECHL and the AHL where he won the Louis A. R. Pieri Memorial Award for “Most Outstanding Head Coach.” Granato was also an assistant coach for the Wisconsin Badgers (NCAA), St. Louis Blues and Chicago Blackhawks. Krueger brought him on as an assistant in 2019 to fill out his coaching staff. His 3-6-2 record since taking over the gig from Krueger isn’t going to wow unless it’s put in context of his predecessor who had lost 12 in a row and had six wins on the season. What Granato really has going for him is the progress seen with the young players on this team: Tage Thompson (2 goals, 1 assist in his last five games), Casey Mittlestadt (2 goals, 2 assists in his last five games, Henri Jokiharju (1 point, +1 in his past five games) and Rasmus Dahlin (1 goal, 3 assists in his last five games). Granato has preached confidence and offense to his players and the results have been infinitely more watchable than the low-event hockey Krueger employed. Regardless of whether he gets the job, his impact in raising the offensive ceiling and confidence of the young players has been a commendable achievement.
The Sabres will hire Granato if…. young players continue to impress and win.
Available Comparable: Nate Leaman
Next up is media-favorite and firebrand preacher John Tortorella. This one would be fun. I don’t
think there is a candidate who would endear himself to the fanbase quicker than Tortorella. The thought of Tortorella and Mike Harrington arguing at a press conference is a good enough reason to give him a second interview. Tortorella is in the final year of his contract which has fueled speculation that he may be on his way out of Columbus despite solid, continuous success with a roster that often-lacked elite offensive talent. The two-time Jack Adams winner got a ring in Tampa, coached in the hardest media market of NYC, lasted only a year in Vancouver and has been at the helm of some solid Blue Jackets teams since 2015. The narrative on Tortorella is that he tends to burn like a supernova star: he burns brightly but he also flames out quickly and spectacularly. That was definitely true in Vancouver. It looked like his coaching career might be over following one disappointing season that included an ugly hallway
confrontation with Flames coach Bob Hartley but Torts resurrected his career in Columbus and he has made the playoffs in four out of his five years there. With no contract in place, the speculation will run rampant about his future.
The Sabres will hire Tortorella if… they want to energize the old-school Sabres fanbase.
(Semi) Available Comparable: Rod Brind’Amour
Along the lines of a proven head coach like Tortorella, we also have Bruce Boudreau to consider. Boudreau played nearly 20 years of professional hockey, mostly at the AHL, CHL and IHL levels. After his playing career, he made the transition to coaching and he won the Jack Adams award in his very first season as head coach in Washington in 2007-2008. He would end up coaching there for parts of five years, then coach in Anaheim for parts of five seasons, and finally Boudreau coached the Minnesota Wild for parts of four seasons. Nicknamed “Gabby” for his talkative nature, Boudreau has only missed the playoffs twice in 14 seasons as head coach, although he was fired mid-season on two other occasions. And therein lies the paradox: he’s a winning coach who makes the playoffs nearly every year, but he has reached a conference championship only once and he’s never appeared in the Stanley Cup Final. His teams typically do very well in the regular season only to come up short early in the post season. For the Sabres though, merely making the playoffs after 10 years would probably classify him to have his rotund image bronzed in Alumni Plaza. Limited playoff success aside, Boudreau is a respected name in the hockey community and would instantly lend credibility to a Sabres program sorely lacking it.
The Sabres will hire Boudreau if… they want to re-establish credibility among NHL management
Available Comparable: Gerard Gallant
All three candidates (and their comparables) offer a different suite of tools for the Sabres to use.
The skeptical and perhaps cynical Sabres fan might think the betting favorite is Granato because he’s the easiest and perhaps cheapest option. If the team does in fact progress over the final month of the season though, he should be in consideration with the other available coaching candidates. If he doesn’t show promise, the Sabres will have a bevy of quality coaching names out there this off-season to choose from, no matter which direction they go. Either way, hopefully the eighth time’s the charm for the Pegulas in their coaching search.
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