Say You, Say Me - Laviolette Still in Limbo

1) Unless they already have a candidate or two in mind to replace Peter or if player exit interviews indicated that he’s lost the team, it doesn’t make sense to replace him
2) We can’t think of another coach who would/could have done much better. As we’ve mentioned, the canes had MORE wins than the Cup semi finalists Flyers.

If Lavi is let go, it seems that JR & Karmanos are going to have some SERIOUS ‘splaining to do, as it seems Lavi is getting overwhelming support from the people who should matter most – the FANS. Who could they hire as coach that would make the fans forget about Lavi? It’s a tall order. I would love to know what is going on behind the wall of silence and confusion that this organization has put up. They better be careful, because fans are getting a bit exasperated and fed up.

I don’t think that he will be let go….But he will be back, understandably on a short leash, and on a very short timetable for turning this debacle around. I say they will give him less control on who the team signs, etc. and that they offer him a 25 game make it or break it period. But, if like Bubba said, the exit intervews indicated that the players have tuned him out (IMO they did), he may get the walking papers in short order.

Sean

1) Just announced that Joel Quenville was let go. Perhaps the Avs and Canes will ‘swap’ coaches? ; )

Yeah, Sean, I agree – I think that is what they will tell/offer him, but will he accept it? I still think that they will have a lot to explain no matter what happens.

I also doubt that he will be let go, but we don’t know how badly the relationship between GM and coach has deteriorated. I would have never guessed that Rutherford would leave him hanging like this for so long either.

As Faux said, look at Quenneville. The Avs had a ton of injuries, regardless made it to the 2nd round of the playoffs, and he still got canned.

Sometimes the coach and GM don’t see eye to eye on things and something’s got to give.

For Team USA…too bad Rick DiPietro has a bummed hip.

I seem to have trouble leaving comments on your blog. (Congratulations on keeping interesting blogs going while not much is happening.) I wanted to weigh in with some opinions on the coaching process.
        1) The fans are strongly behind PL, but a lot of that is carry over from our Stanley Cup year. Coming off the lost year, the NHL was a different entity.
        The new rules, the unsurety(?) about enforcement and physicality, and the general emphasis on skilled play were unusual. By last year, there was a return to more physical play, that continued this year. PL has been very up front about his opposition to "goon hockey". He even went so far as to try to prohibit
        his players from fighting. JR, on the other hand, wants to get larger and more physical. There could be a philosophical difference there.

   2. Since the Stanley Cup year, the Canes have missed the playoffs 2 years in a row. They are the only team in NHL history to do that. Not a rousing endorsement of the coach.
   3. JR made note of the bad stretch of play from December to January. Several bloggers (yourself included, if I remember correctly) were less than enthralled with the team’s effort and consistency. I found several games to be excruciating to watch. Their performance did little to further their cause, or attract fans. Like it or not, when a team shows disinterest or lack of consistent effort, the blame is laid at the feet of the coach. Motivation and consistency are his responsibility.
   4. When the Canes had the division virtually in hand, they fumbled it away. A lot of that was bad personnel decisions. Rushing back injured players to take the place of productive replacements disrupted team chemistry, sent a bad message, and put players on the ice with less to contribute than those they replaced. Considering his prejudice against physicality, it was no surprise that Brookbank and Conboy were 2 of the victims. Those were coaching decisions.
   5. Probably most important, the Canes lost money. They had a chance to get into the playoffs, and lessen the loss, or possibly make money. Decisions that lead directly to that money loss are going to be questioned. I’m not sure that JR is as disappointed with PL as the owner is. Regardless of when you think the season was lost, many of the problems the team had came from issues the coach is supposed to control.
   6. Does PL have the kind of control over a veteran team that he needs. Maybe it was no coincidence that the team started to respond after the locker room was full of newer younger, less experienced players, who responded to the PL message.

 
 
There are a lot of issues with the coach here. All things considered, there are more than enough questions for the bosses to consider. When you add them up, I wonder why more fans aren’t looking for more accountability from PL.
 
NCYANKEE

NCYANKEE -
Good points. The fact that the young players performed and they carried the team (along with Staal) when Brindy went down is another reason why fans are behind Lavi, whether or not it was because the veterans that he “lost” were not playing. The team did have more wins than other teams that made the playoffs, so isn’t the coach also responsible for that as well? I think fans (myself included) saw a coach that did an excellent job with not much to work with for 2 years because of injury, even though it’s never supposed to be an excuse. It seems now that the injuries came because of his opposition to physicality and fighting, and maybe that is why he lost the veterans. Therein lies the philosophical difference, but we still don’t know because the organization is keeping everyone hanging, including the fans. This seems like a PR nightmare for JR – he may have a perfectly good reason to fire his coach, but 90% of the fan base appears to be behind Lavi. They can’t afford to lose season ticket holders or any other fans, because not making the playoffs 2 years in a row is money not earned. JR is between a rock and a hard place – maybe that is why Karmanos is coming to the rescue. It will be interesting to see how it all plays out. (my head hurts now)

NCYANKEE- Good points. I think JR is between a rock and a hard place – they need the fans to stay because of the money not earned from missing the playoffs, and Lavi is EXTREMELY popular with fans. Perception outside the organization is that he accomplished a lot with very little – more wins than some playoff teams, and motivating Staal and the younger players. When you think about what happened from an inside perspective, he still didn’t make the playoffs (lost money), managed to get his veterans beat up because of lack of physical play & intimidation (Cullen) and even lost the division when it mattered most. But I do think JR is just as responsible for the “bad stretch.” Pull the trigger! I hate the silence on the Lavi issue.

Sorry about the double comments – they both didn’t appear to show up when I posted them.

No problem marc.

NCYankee-

Good points, Lavi made mistakes no doubt. My question is, does he deserve to be fired? Does he deserve this lack of endorsement or respect for the past month?

Some people in the league were saying that he might be coach of the year, that is until the team fell apart in the last week to 10 days of the season. After the Brindy injury, he took a ragtag bunch and guided them into playing, arguably, the best hockey in the NHL for about a month.

Hopefully this is all resolved one way or the other, this week.