Wanna blog? Start your own hockey blog with My HockeyBuzz. Register for free today!
 

Vancouver Canucks: Coaching Carousel Update, Draft Combine Notes
June 1, 2016, 2:23 PM ET [266 Comments]
Carol Schram
Vancouver Canucks Blogger • RSS • Archive • CONTACT
Let's start today with the latest words on the coaching vacancies in the NHL, as they relate to the Vancouver Canucks.

With Ken Hitchcock re-upped for another year in St. Louis, it looks like the only jobs that need filling are the ones in Anaheim and Calgary. Bruce Boudreau landed with Minnesota on May 7 and Guy Boucher signed on with Ottawa one day later—with Marc Crawford as his associate coach.

Willie Desjardins is quickly moving up the ranks of coaching seniority. Just two years into his tenure in Vancouver, 11 coaches have been on the job for less time than Desjardins. That number will grow to 13 when the Ducks and Flames jobs are filled.

Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register has a thorough rundown of the latest from Anaheim, which now includes former Ducks coach Randy Carlyle back in the mix.

As Stephens points out, Carlyle wouldn't be the first coach ever to return to his old job. Michel Therrien's on his second go-round in Montreal and Paul Maurice put in two tours of duty in Carolina. Carlyle was the bench boss for the Ducks' lone Stanley Cup win, back in 2007, so his prior relationship with team leaders Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry could put him on the inside track for the gig.

Here's what Stephens has to say about Utica Comets coach Travis Green:

Travis Green has already interviewed with Murray and remains very much a prime contender for the job. Green, 45, is a former Ducks center who’s seen as the up-and-comer who’s ready for his first NHL shot.

Kyle Gustafson believes so. Gustafson coached with and under Green with the Western Hockey League’s Portland Winterhawks when Green led them to the 2013 WHL championship.

“What makes him a great coach is his work ethic for sure,” Gustafson said. “He’s a guy that spends a lot of time at the rink. He’s an outside-the-box thinker. He’s going to do everything he can to exhaust every option.

“On top of that, probably the best thing about Travis is he holds his players accountable. That’s top to bottom in his lineup.”


Other names he mentions include current assistants Paul MacLean and Trent Yawney, Mike Yeo, Luke Richardson—and Dale Hunter? I thought Hunter was done with the NHL for good when he left the Washington Capitals to return to his London Knights, the team that just won the 2016 Memorial Cup. I'd be mighty surprised to see Hunter back in the NHL coaching mix.

Stephens also mentions that Randy Carlyle has interviewed twice for the job opening in Calgary.

Kristen J Shilton has that rundown at USA Today. She names Carlyle and Green as the top candidates for the Flames, with Mike Yeo, John Torchetti, Dave Cameron, Paul MacLean and Mike Johnston as dark horses.

Shilton thinks Green is the best fit in Calgary:

Hartley’s firing after the Flames season ended without a playoff berth was surprising. One year ago, Hartley was a Jack Adams Award winner who had taken his team to the second round of the playoffs. Flames management felt that was as far as he was capable of going, a not-so-subtle way of saying they want someone who could do a better job maximizing their young talent. Enter Green, a coach not so far removed from his own days as a player. He’s a smart, tough coach, but he’s creative too. He has experience working with younger players.


She doesn't mention current Canucks assistant Glen Gulutzan, who is apparently still in the running.




I would expect both these vacancies to be filled in the next week or so, as teams begin to prepare in earnest for the draft and free agency.

In other news, today's the day that teams need to declare how they plan to disperse the compensatory draft picks that they're required to hand over. No surprise here:




As things currently stand, the Canucks will pick just six times on draft weekend.




As the draft combine rolls along, Elliotte Friedman says in his new 30 Thoughts column that Matthew Tkachuk's interviews are helping him to make a case for himself to be considered in the same breath as Matthews, Laine and Puljujarvi.

Friedman suggests that Tkachuk's heavy playing style could be tempting for the Columbus Blue Jackets and calls the likelihood that he'd be available to Vancouver or Calgary at five or six "nearing infinitesimal." The good news for the Canucks is that if Tkachuk becomes a sure-fire top-four pick, that should leave Pierre-Luc Dubois on the table at five.

Here are a couple of tidbits on the Canucks' activity during player meetings at the draft combine so far:










Though Ronning's expected to be a mid-round selection, he earned feature coverage at NHL.com.

It's a good interview, and Ty has clearly absorbed plenty of lessons from his dad, former Canuck Cliff Ronning.

"My dad, he says I'm faster than him straight ahead, but agility I need to work on a little more," Ronning said. "As a smaller player, you've got to be quick and agile in the way you move and the way you do things on the ice. My father was really good at that. If you watch clips, I don't think I can remember a big hit on him. He's always moving around and he's always giving head fakes and whatnot. He was good at what he did, and I try to mimic things. I need to work on my agility. I'm good at it, don't get me wrong, but to get to the NHL level, I need to get better, for sure."
Join the Discussion: » 266 Comments » Post New Comment
More from Carol Schram
» Winning Canucks send down Podkolzin, Rathbone as homestand begins
» Power-play fuels big win in Vegas as Canucks look to sweep 3-game road trip
» The Canucks' position at U.S. Thanksgiving, following a big win in Denver
» Trade winds blow as the Canucks kick off road trip against the Avalanche
» Podkolzin returns as Canucks host Vegas amidst Horvat, Myers trade rumours