Rock Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/devils/here_the_hitch_3DrSNCvNNZ06zIEF53F5kL So the name this time, the coach several sources have told Slap Shots that Lou Lamoriello intends to hire this summer, is Ken Hitchcock. And that makes perfect sense because the Devils general manager, who in the previous six summers since the lockout hired Larry Robinson, Claude Julien, Brent Sutter, Jacques Lemaire and John MacLean, has to go for the safe pick this time, has to go for a coach who will grab every one of his players' attention and command every one of his players' respect the moment he walks in the room the first day of training camp. Risk-taking is pretty much an alien concept when it comes to the Devils. Of all the candidates out there, Hitchcock represents the least risk of all for Lamoriello, who is all but certainly hiring his final coach in New Jersey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vadvlfan Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 Well, I guess we can cross Hitch's name off the list. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sundstrom Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 hitch does make sense - i would be ok with it. i'm not so sure that brooks has any more sources than anyone else - he can say inside sources which would be anyone that is in hockey that just says, "God, Hitchcock sure makes more sense than anyone else. Could the Devils really get anyone else?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RunninWithTheDevil Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 He better pick a safe choice. The devils have been the punchline of coaching changes for the past 10 years. guys, lets just bring back Mac and see what happens, we'll just roll with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scottie2Hottie Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 guys, lets just bring back Mac and see what happens, we'll just roll with it. lol that made me chuckle because it should never AND THE ROCK MEANS EVER happen again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmajeski06 Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 (edited) JMac has more than likely coached his last NHL game for a VERY long time. At least not until he tries the AHL again, and maybe some time as an assistant somewhere. But this team's turn around after he left was the final nail in the coffin and I would be surprised if he ever does coach again. Edited May 1, 2011 by mmajeski06 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NJDevs4978 Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 hitch does make sense - i would be ok with it. i'm not so sure that brooks has any more sources than anyone else - he can say inside sources which would be anyone that is in hockey that just says, "God, Hitchcock sure makes more sense than anyone else. Could the Devils really get anyone else?" To be fair, he had Kovy getting a $100 million offer last offseason days before anyone else. The Post writers are ***holes when they write op-ed pieces, but Brooks and (N)Єverson do have as many sources as it's possible to have with the Devils. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoArmySports Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 JMac has more than likely coached his last NHL game for a VERY long time. At least not until he tries the AHL again, and maybe some time as an assistant somewhere. But this team's turn around after he left was the final nail in the coffin and I would be surprised if he ever does coach again. If I were JMAC I would find a top notch coaching job at some d-1 college. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devils731 Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 To be fair, he had Kovy getting a $100 million offer last offseason days before anyone else. The Post writers are ***holes when they write op-ed pieces, but Brooks and (N)Єverson do have as many sources as it's possible to have with the Devils. I think people had Kovy's agent sources with the Kovy thing, not Devils sources. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pepperkorn Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 Blahdee blahdee blah ... Seems like a desperate unimaginative choice. A poor man's Pat Burns AT BEST Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DevsMan84 Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 Ken Hitchcock would be the perfect fit for the Devils and have wanted him since JMac has been tanking. His coaching style and philosophy would work best with this team and he knows how to deal with both rookies and veterans. As for rookie coaches, this just is the type of team that chews and spits them out like they are nothing. Some teams can be more flexibe and can adapt to coaching and playing styles much easier, but with the Devils they are probably the least adaptable team to other coaching philosophies. I think a lot of it stems that the style of play does not start with the coach like most teams, but from the top (GM) down. The way Lou builds the team, it is in a style that he is familiar with and has won in the past so he does not stray too far away from that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colorado Rockies 1976 Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 (edited) He better pick a safe choice. The devils have been the punchline of coaching changes for the past 10 years. guys, lets just bring back Mac and see what happens, we'll just roll with it. This is 2011. 2011 - 10 = 2001 The year before 2001, I'd say the firing of Robbie Ftorek worked out pretty well, as Larry Robinson took over with 8 games remaining in the '99-'00 season and led his team to 2 SC Finals, winning one Cup and falling short of a second Cup by one game. In 2003, first-year Devil coach Pat Burns took his team to the Cup. It's not like every coaching change over the last 10 or so years has been a disaster, save for MacLean and Larry Robinson (post-strike), and there have been circumstances that caused some of the changes (Burns' sickness, Robinson stepping down, Lemaire retiring, Sutter quitting, etc). It's not like Lou has always had an itchy trigger finger. Edited May 2, 2011 by Colorado Rockies 1976 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SatansDevils Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 Would not mind at all seeing Ken Hitchcock the next Devils coach. The players want a coach like Lemaire then Ken Hitchcock would be that coach for these players. I think once the WC are done Hitchcock most likely will meet with Lou and hopefully will be the next Devils coach. Mike Haviland would be my only other option/choice to coach this team. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amberite Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 Hitchcock gets a lot of undeserved flak from people. He is a very capable coach, and his years in DAL / PHI attest to that. As we all know, Philly was atrocious in 2007, and in no relation to Hitchcock (he got fired after 8 games). He got Columbus to their first Stanley Cup appearance, but there is only so much you can do with limited talent on the team. With a capable roster like we have, I think a coach like Hitchcock can take us far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarpathianForest Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 I'm sure if Hitch gets offered the opportunity to co-host Chico eats then he'll jump at the chance to coach the Devils. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pepperkorn Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 I know I seem contrary wanting Lemaire and then scoffing at Hitchcock. I don't get the feeling players WANT a Lemaire type. Theywant the known commodity LEMAIRE. They understand him now. I just think it's blah. A blah choice. It's not exciting motivating nor is it scary. It's just --- defensive hockey. Not The System. Just A system. A defensive system. I don't see him adapting as far as these guys need to. Lemaire was short term. Hitch is just. Blah an angry disciplined blob of top of average BLAH. I don't think these guys are creative enough to have it work So ha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pepperkorn Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 My hope is that oats (oh no I di'int) Oates can be a creative force. But I just think he's overly polite he'll let them team fail before stepping on toes. Hitch'll probably get rid of him anyhow Not like it's even Hitchcock yet. I'm just not a fan at this juncture. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmajeski06 Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 Hitchcock gets a lot of undeserved flak from people. He is a very capable coach, and his years in DAL / PHI attest to that. As we all know, Philly was atrocious in 2007, and in no relation to Hitchcock (he got fired after 8 games). He got Columbus to their first Stanley Cup appearance, but there is only so much you can do with limited talent on the team. With a capable roster like we have, I think a coach like Hitchcock can take us far. Agreed. Now some of Columbus' success that year could be attributed to the fact Steve Mason played amazing, which he hasn't done since...but getting the Jackets to their first playoff appearance was quite the accomplishment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SS-SS Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 What is a safe coaching choice ? XD Can anyone tell me about Hitchcock and how he works with young players? (Tedenby,Napalm,Josefson,Tao,Urbom etc) Anyone think Peter DeBoer is a good choice ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soulartist23 Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 What is a safe coaching choice ? XD Can anyone tell me about Hitchcock and how he works with young players? (Tedenby,Napalm,Josefson,Tao,Urbom etc) Anyone think Peter DeBoer is a good choice ? He was the Panther's coach right? If so, he actually accomplished a lot with the roster he had, and got them to play well against top teams in the league. Goodness knows the Panthers had our number this past season. I wouldn't mind him at all. Also, I would feel more comfortable with him coaching our younger guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pepperkorn Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 I hate Brent Sutter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMazz Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 What's Kevin Constantine up to these days? >.> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LucifersDog Posted May 8, 2011 Share Posted May 8, 2011 He maybe safe but I don't think he is the coach for the Devils future he isn't aggressive enough offensively and hasn't worked well with the youth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
devlman Posted May 9, 2011 Share Posted May 9, 2011 (edited) I dont see Kovy or Parise getting along with Hitch Edited May 9, 2011 by devlman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrthemike Posted May 10, 2011 Share Posted May 10, 2011 I dont see Kovy or Parise getting along with Hitch If you're going to make that statement give us some reasons why you think that... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.