A familiar face is returning to the Anaheim Ducks organization. Kevin Dineen will take his place behind the bench this fall as the second coach in San Diego Gulls history.
Since their inaugural season in 2015-16, the San Diego Gulls have been a successful organization under the guidance of their head coach, Dallas Eakins. They’ve made the playoffs every season, aside from the near miss in 2018, and made it all the way to the Western Conference Finals this past year. However, all of Eakin’s success made him the prime candidate to be the next head coach of the Anaheim Ducks.
After drawing out the hiring process longer than he should have, Bob Murray announced to the media and the fans on June 17, 2019, that Dallas Eakins had finally been hired as the next coach of the franchise. However, with Eakins’ departure from the AHL, Murray had another important task to attend to. The San Diego Gulls needed a new head coach before the start of the season, and so the hunt began.
After almost a month long search, the Anaheim Ducks have finally announced that they are bringing a familiar face back to the organization. Kevin Dineen is a brilliant hire on Bob Murray’s part, and hopefully, he will be the coach that will continue to lead the San Diego Gulls down the path of success.
Kevin Dineen’s Coaching History
Dineen has been down this road with the Anaheim Ducks before when he coached their AHL affiliate, the Portland Pirates, from 2005-2008. When the Buffalo Sabres announced an affiliation agreement with the Pirates, they kept Dineen with the team until the end of the Sabres era in 2011.
During his tenure with the Pirates, although the team never won the Calder Cup, they made the playoffs every year except for one, the 2006-07 season. After the 2011 season, he left the AHL to take a position as the head coach with the Florida Panthers. Things went well during his first season, but things quickly snowballed out of control and resulted in a mid-season firing during the 2013-14 season.
From there, he went on to coach the U18 Team Canada to a bronze medal in 2013-14 WJC. That same year, he coached the women’s Olympic Canadian hockey team to a gold medal during the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics in Russia.
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He was hired by the Chicago Blackhawks as an assistant coach prior to the 2014-15 season, to serve alongside Joel Quenneville. He spent five seasons behind the bench as an assistant but was unfortunately relieved of his duties when the Blackhawks fired coach Q. Waiting until the new season started to find his next job, he spent some time coaching Team Canada during the Spengler Cup this past year. Unfortunately, they lost in the finals.
Kevin Dineen is a Great Hire for the San Diego Gulls
Although Kevin Dineen has had to jump over a few hurdles during his time in the NHL, he has proven that he can be successful at an AHL level. Under his guidance, the Portland Pirates made two Conference Final appearances and qualified for the Calder Cup Playoffs five out of the six season’s he coached.
While some might consider his time in the AHL to have been a mixed success, his team made it further in the playoffs than Dallas Eakins ever did. Plus, the incredible talent that the San Diego Gulls already have on their roster will make his job easier.
His experience at the NHL level will also aid him as he prepares several of the Anaheim Ducks prospects for the NHL. Their transition will be a lot smoother and less stressful under his guidance.
If Bob Murray wants to turn things around for the Anaheim Ducks and bring them back to their winning ways, it was very smart of him not to neglect the San Diego Gulls. For the entire franchise to be successful, the AHL team needs to be successful as well. There are several players who will spend time with the Gulls as they prepare to become the future of the Anaheim Ducks. If they develop good habits in the AHL, it will translate in the NHL, and in return, the Anaheim Ducks will be a better team because of it.
What are your thoughts on the hiring of Kevin Dineen? Do you think the San Diego Gulls will continue to be successful under his guidance? Let us know by leaving a comment for us in the comment section down below!