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Anaheim Ducks Coaching Dilemma Goes Beyond Simply Firing Bruce Boudreau

By Griffin Foster

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Anaheim Ducks head coach Bruce Boudreau began this week on the hot seat and it is safe to say that seat may now be on fire, an extinguisher is nowhere within reach.

Blowing a 3-0 lead in Dallas led Boudreau to use the word “demoralizing” after the game. He’s “at a loss right now” and there may be no other phrase in the human vocabulary that greater signifies need of change.

The problem here is that Boudreau has a far greater resume than any other potential coaching candidate.

Randy Carlyle is the obvious name we all know. He was the man behind the bench in 2006-2007 when the Ducks won their first and only Stanley Cup, but his return to Anaheim is in question.

The reason being that Ducks general manager Bob Murray was the man who fired Carlyle in Anaheim while Ducks ‘consultant to the general manager’ Dave Nonis was the man who axed Carlyle in Toronto when Nonis was serving as the Leafs general manager.

This leads to believe that if a coaching change is made it would come from within. Ducks assistant coaches Paul Maclean and Trent Yawney are the two potential candidates.

In four seasons as head coach of the Ottawa Senators, Maclean posted a record of 114-90-35, getting his team to the playoffs twice.

Maclean’s experience is obvious and his ties to the Ducks run deep, he also served as an assistant during the Mike Babcock era in Anaheim.

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Now in his second tour of duty, Maclean runs the Ducks power play and brings the offensive mindset to the Ducks bench. The case for Maclean begins with experience and ends with familiarity of the Anaheim Ducks organization.

Trent Yawney is quite the opposite of Maclean. He has less than two seasons of head coaching experience from his days with the Chicago Blackhawks. He posted a 26-43-13 record in ’05-’06 and a 7-12-2 record in ’06-’07 before being fired and replaced by Denis Savard.

To Yawney’s defense, those teams were not up to par with today’s Blackhawk teams as his teams leading scorers in ’05-’06 were Kyle Calder (59 points) and Mark Bell (48 points), so let’s not take Yawney’s head coaching history into extensive consideration.

What Yawney would bring to the Ducks as a head coach is defense and intensity.

Yawney currently runs the Ducks young blue-line and has done a nice job evolving the game of Lindholm, Fowler and Vatanen.

Yawney’s intensity is a quality that flies under the radar. As much as we see the fire red tomato face’d Boudreau scream at his team during games, it is often Yawney who let’s the Ducks hear it during practice when they are playing with their heads up their rear ends.

Could an overly intense presence be what the Ducks need right now?

Yes, the Ducks have had troubles offensively which leads to the questions about bringing in a defensive minded coach, but you have to believe the Ducks will get their goal scoring back on track soon.

Maclean is offense, experience and familiarity while Yawney is defense, intensity and a fresh start.

The problem here is that Bob Murray cannot hire either of them, here’s why.

Hiring Maclean means that Yawney obviously does not get the job and vise versa.

What would that do to the moral behind the bench?

Things are bad enough on the ice right now to where players are not meshing and gelling with each other, the last thing Murray needs is to stir up controversy with his coaches.

Sure, Maclean and Yawney are grown men and both understand that this is a business, but picking one over the other isn’t going to help a team that is lacking consistency and identity right now more than anything.

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Anaheim Ducks /

Anaheim Ducks

Choosing Yawney is a slap in the face to the more experienced Maclean, the man who has put in his time with Anaheim and with Ottawa. But choosing Yawney is choosing a man of uncertainty, a man who has not been given the correct opportunity to prove himself.

What if Trent Yawney just needs another chance with the right team? Two years with a skill deprived Chicago roster doesn’t seem like enough to write the script on Yawney’s coaching career.

Mike Babcock coached in Anaheim for two seasons before leaving. Two seasons later he was given the job in Detroit and he has since flourished into an one of today’s most elite head coaches.

Whose to say Yawney’s intense nature isn’t exactly what this Ducks team needs right now? Whose to say that a more relaxed and experienced Maclean isn’t exactly what the Ducks need?

There is too much uncertainty to choose between two guys that are sitting at opposite ends of the table in terms of what they offer. Each has unique assets while both are just looking for another opportunity to prove themselves.

Right now the best thing for Murray to do is to wait.

Not wait for this team to wake up, but to wait on a coaching decision. Murray should absolutely explore his trade options and now is the time to dangle prospects as trade bait.

The Ducks prospect depth is continually growing as Murray has done a great job of building and remaining patient over the years. He has acquired picks and players for a time when controversy presents itself.

That time is now. Bob Murray should hold back on the coaching change and he should offer up a juicy deal containing notable prospects in order to change the outlook of his team.

The Yawney versus Maclean game is one that Murray won’t win, there is simply too much up in the air to gamble on that.

The time for intense trade exploration is now. Keeping the future bright is always an issue at hand, but this team’s cup window will not remain open forever.

Next: Anaheim Ducks Captain Ryan Getzlaf Out 4-12 Days

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