Cold ice, hot seats: 3 coaches who might not make it to the end of the season
By Jim Lynch
Every year there are some coaching changes made midseason around the NHL. Entering November, there are definitely a few coaches already to watch as potential candidates to not make it to the end of the season.
Last season had just one coaching change when the Vancouver Canucks replaced Bruce Boudreau with Rick Tocchet. The year before that, seven different teams had coaching changes. In the NHL, making a coaching change can sometimes result in a winning boom under a new bench boss, and that could be the case again this season.
There are a lot of teams that believe they are built for the playoffs this season, but only 16 teams make the playoffs at the end of the day. With only so many playoff spots available, teams already have to be thinking about their path to the postseason and whether or not their current head coach is the right person for the job.
One of the most successful coaching changes came in 2018-19 when the St. Louis Blues dismissed Mike Yeo and brought in Craig Berube near the end of November. Berube and the Blues would go from sitting in last place across the entire league in January to being the Stanley Cup Champs that summer.
The Pittsburgh Penguins won the Stanley Cup in 2009 and 2016, after making a coaching change that season, and the Los Angeles Kings won the Stanley Cup in 2012 after making a coaching change that season. There is a reason teams believe a coaching change can get them on the right track, so without further ado, let's talk about the three teams this season that might make a change.
3. Don Granato, Buffalo Sabres
This is Don Granato's fourth season with the Buffalo Sabres, and he has not gotten the Sabres to the postseason yet. As head coach, Granato is 87-93-21, and while those are positive numbers, they are not that great.
The Sabres are looking to make the postseason this year. They have starting talent in Tage Thompson, Dylan Cozens and Jeff Skinner. Additionally, their blueline is stacked with talent, especially with Dahlin and Owen Power. Overall, teams cannot rebuild forever, and this Sabres team is ready to take the next step.
Through nine games, the Sabres power play is drastically underperforming compared to other teams. They have converted just 10.7 percent of their opportunities. With a record of 4-5-0, maybe it is time for a new voice in Buffalo? The month of November is going to be critical for the Sabres and Granato.