17 October 2007

Hartley Sacked!

Breaking news from TSN:

Atlanta Thrashers' head coach Bob Hartley has been fired. Sources tell TSN general manger Don Waddell will be behind the bench on an interim basis until a new coach can be found. Details to follow...

A press conference will be held at 2 p.m. this afternoon at which time Waddell will take questions from the media.

In the understatement of possibly the decade, Waddell declared during today's press conference; "We felt after six games the direction we were going was not the direction we wanted to go." We are wholly underwhelmed by this statement. Seriously, that was the best he could do? Perhaps it's not too too logical to come right out and say "Well I couldn't fire myself so Hartley's gone!" Because next on the block better be Waddell before players are sent packing. Are there some we'd love to see cut? Of course, but it's not our hockey team. Technically. We don't sign the paycheques if you get our drift. But we don't think the problem lies so intensely with the players, although they're the ones not putting up the points. Management is the key to any successful business, and hockey is no different.

Up next: Who will coach. Of course, the thousands of internet prognosticators, your beloveds at FWH included, will speculate until time out of mind. But here's the thing. Hartley's a coach in the vein of Bowman and Keenan. Let's try a more hands-on, compassionate, younger coach. Let's try a Tony Granato. Let's try a Paul Maurice, or a Glen Hanlon. Let's try... hell, what's Mellanby up to? The fact of the matter is, the worst players make the best coaches (Exhibit A: Wayne Gretzky), because they know what not to do. So someone get on this, find the worst recently-retired player who has a sense of compassion and doesn't just bark out instructions. Most importantly, let's find a coach who won't fuck with our goalies the way Hartley has been. Are they our problem right now? They're one of them - but they can be a much bigger problem, Kari especially, if they keep getting jerked around. A goalie needs to know his coach, and his team, has confidence in him, and at this point, we doubt Kari believes anyone has confidence in him.

Today is the first day of a new era in Blueland. Let's hope for positive change.

2 comments:

Sens, Interrupted said...

damn you're fast.

Tiffany said...

We have amazing sources! :)