Anaheim’s head coach could be looking for a new job if rumors are to be believed.
Let’s get this out of the way: I don’t delight in talking about a man losing his job.
As much as we all get emotionally invested in following professional sports teams such as the Anaheim Ducks, our passion is another man’s livelihood, and I try to keep that in mind when I’m lamenting the failures of the teams that I follow.
With that out of the way, it comes as no surprise to read today that there is a chance that the Anaheim Ducks organization is looking to part ways with Bruce Boudreau.
Ducks GM won't confirm Boudreau’s return. Boudreau has gone 162-79-29 in Anaheim. http://t.co/zJxE7ePBbv pic.twitter.com/fqpmGmMrPU
— theScore (@theScore) June 3, 2015
Boudreau might be able to boast a 162-79-29 regular season record and three straight Pacific Division titles with the Ducks, but teams don’t train, draft, trade, and aspire to win division titles; everything a team does is designed to capture Lord Stanley’s Cup.
Not only has Boudreau failed to win the Cup, which is forgivable (it is, after all, pretty tough to do), but he failed to take the best team in the Western Conference to the Stanley Cup Finals three years in a row now, and that is not easily forgiven.
Worse, Boudreau’s teams have lost three straight Game 7s AT HOME, giving him a 1-6 record in Game 7s during his NHL coaching career. That, more than his 21-15 playoff record, is easily the most damning evidence against him – that when it’s time to go all in and produce a victory under the toughest circumstances, Bruce Boudreau just cannot get it done.
Before the season, Boudreau signed a two-year extension with the Anaheim Ducks that runs through 2017. When asked about his standing with the team yesterday, Boudreau replied, “As far as I know. No one’s told me anything different.”
However, Ducks GM Bob Murray would not commit to a ringing endorsement of his head coach:
"I haven’t talked to the coaching staff one bit. I thought the coaching staff made strides this year. But I’ve still got to talk to them. I’m not ready to talk to them. We’ve got to meet later.I’ve got to sort things out in my mind. I’m not one to do things quickly. I’m evaluating the whole hockey team. That’s not a yes or a no. I’ve got to evaluate everything."
Not exactly the kiss of death, mind you, but certainly the sort of GM-talk you hear in the waning hours of a coach’s tenure with a team.
Rumor has it that Murray was not thrilled with Boudreau’s decision to make James Wisniewski a healthy scratch for the Ducks’ entire playoffs run, electing to go with Clayton Stoner instead. The Ducks gave up a promising prospect and a second-round pick for Wisniewski, only to have him log exactly zero minutes of ice time in the postseason. When management goes out and gets you a player who is supposed to help you win playoff games, and you elect not to use him . . . well, that sort of stuff doesn’t sit well with your boss.
There is absolutely nothing concrete to report either way, but only a truly naive fan would dismiss the possibility that the Anaheim Ducks could be looking for a new head coach this summer.