Coaching Overhaul In Southeast Division

Two Southeast Division teams, both with evident expectations, have fired their head coaches within a few hours on Monday morning. Paul Maurice was let go by the Carolina Hurricanes and the HBO star Bruce Boudreau was terminated by the Washington Capitals. Two different coaches, two different histories, but one common underpinning: their teams were underachieving.

The Capitals sit in 8th in the Eastern Conference, 3 points out of first place in the Southeast Division. They are off to a 12-9-1 start that has been marred by a 3-6-1 record in their last ten games and are burdened by superstar Alex Ovechkin's sub-par play; he has just 17 points through 22 games. A perceived rift between Boudreau and Ovechkin may have sealed Boudreau's fate; it's much easier to get rid of the coach than your $121 million superstar.

Boudreau went 201-88-40 in the regular season, leading the talent-laden Caps to four consecutive division titles in his four-plus seasons. He won the Jack Adams in 2007-2008 in his rookie season after taking over Glen Hanlon's Capitals and never looked back. But the players seemed to have tuned Boudreau out and his brash style may have run it's course in Washington. From an Associated Press excerpt, Capitals GM George McPhee weighed in on Boudreau's firing:

"This was simply a case of the players were no longer responding to Bruce. When you see that, as much as you don't want to make a change, you have to make a change," general manager George McPhee said.

"Bruce came in here and emptied the tank. He gave it everything he could and did a really good job, but the tank was empty," McPhee added. "When that happens, you get a new coach, where the tank is full and see if it makes a difference."

The Capitals are simply too loaded to be mired in another November swoon, similar to a stretch last season where the Caps dropped nine in a row in December. When your superstar has tuned you out, a change has to be made. Boudreau likely won't be unemployed for long. But in DC, the time to win is now, and Boudreau simply wasn't producing the results in a "what have you done for me lately?" league.

Dale Hunter will take over the reigns in the nation's capitol after coaching the London Knights from 2001-2002 on, winning the 2005 Memorial Cup. Hunter will demand accountability the way Boudreau failed to over the Caps listless stretch, something that was needed to shake up a stagnant locker room.

In Carolina, the situation is much different. The Caps were at least holding a playoff spot and they had a coach with a .611 winning percentage. Paul Maurice and his Hurricanes are stuck in dead last in the Southeast, four points ahead of the Islanders for last in the East and the Isles have played four fewer games. Realistically, the Canes have been the worst team in the Eastern Conference.

Maurice posted a .417 winning percentage in two stints
with the Carolina organization.

It was Maurice's second failed stint in Carolina, who went 384-391-99-46 overall in both his stints with Carolina, garnering just four playoff appearances in ten full seasons with a trip to the Finals in 2002. But, like in Washington, Maurice seemed to have lost his team with a rock-bottom effort in Montreal a week and a half ago. The Canes power play sits at 12.2%, good for 29th in the league. This came to the forefront yesterday in a 4-3 loss at Ottawa where the Canes went 1-for-8 on the power play. For a team that has been on the power play a league-best 115 times, the Canes simply weren't getting results under Maurice and a change was imminent.

The Canes bring in Kirk Muller, a long-respect assistant coach who had just two months of coaching the Milwaukee Admirals in the AHL (10-6-1), was brought in to replace Maurice. Muller, who was nicknamed "Kirk is Work", will expect his players to work hard in all facets of the game will hold his team accountable. He is versatile, something that is essential for a team like Carolina who is in transition. From Muller in the Montreal Gazette:

 
“You have to be good defensively, you have to be good without the puck,” he added. “But since the lockout and no red line, you’ve got to be able to score and you’ve got to be able to score at the right time. So I really stress for the guys to be a very aggressive forechecking team, and I tell my forwards that if they want to play here they gotta work … they’ve got to be workers and do a lot of skating and tracking down and heavy forecheck.”

The time was right in both Carolina and Washington. Maurice and Boudreau arenot bad coaches but they had overstayed their welcomes in their respective cities. In a results-driven league, it's simply business that is pushing these two out the door. Hunter and Muller will face different challenges respectively, but the overhauls for both squads was essential if they want to right the ship for a playoff drive.

GOH