San Jose Sharks, Todd McLellan mutually agree to part ways
The San Jose Sharks and head coach Todd McLellan have mutually agreed to part ways after seven seasons.
Todd McLellan is out as the head coach of the San Jose Sharks after seven seasons.
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The Sharks and McLellan mutually agreed to part ways after a 40-33-9 season that saw the team finish in fifth place in the Pacific division and eight points out of a playoff spot. San Jose missed the postseason for the first time since 2002-2003, snapping the second longest active streak in the NHL behind the Detroit Red Wings.
“I want to thank Todd and his staff for their years of service to the San Jose Sharks organization,” general manager Doug Wilson said in a statement released by the team, via CBSSports.com. “Sometimes a change is best for all parties involved but nothing will take away from what Todd and his staff accomplished here over the last seven seasons.”
McLellan came to San Jose from Detroit where he was an assistant coach on Mike Babcock’s staff where he was instrumental in the Wings success on the power play and won a Stanley Cup in the 2007-2008 season. In June, he was hired by the Sharks and won the President’s Trophy in his first season with 117 points and finished third in the voting for the Jack Adams Award.
He leaves San Jose as the team’s all-time leader in games coached and as their all-time wins leader with a 311-163-66 record and advanced as far as the Western Conference Finals twice.
“San Jose will always hold a special place for me and my family, McLellan said in a statement, via CBSSports.com. I would like to thank Doug and the Sharks organization for allowing me the opportunity to coach at the National Hockey League level. While we both agree that a change is in the best interest of myself and the team, I’m proud of what we accomplished as an organization.”
A change should be good for both parties after a disappointing last year-plus with the Sharks blowing a 3-0 series lead in the first round of the playoffs last year to the Los Angeles Kings and issues in the clubhouse where Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau have had their names bandied about in trade rumors and had their letters stripped prior to the season.
The Sharks cited a ‘fresh start’ when they removed the letters from the two, but now the fresh start can really begin with a new head coach who’s first task will be getting his players rallied behind him and getting the team back in the postseason where they’ve been 15 times in the 17 years.
As for McLellan, he could be a candidate to fill the vacancy with the Edmonton Oilers and Philadelphia Flyers.
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