BanTSN Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 He did as good in NYR as he did for us last time against LA. Lose in 5. When you don't have the horses... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Undrafted Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 Take a look at the roster AV had in Montreal in 97-98 and tell me that was a below average team talent wise, even so every coach inherits a roster so we won't take anything away from him. I never said Nashville made the playoffs every year, But don't compare any AV coached roster to what Trotz accomplished in Nashville with an expansion team since 98, they've always been competitive and they made the playoffs 7 times in the last 10 years with a dogs breakfast of a roster. TBH, I was going by memory and after looking up the roster, I admit that the 97-98 Habs weren't as bad as I thought (but they still weren't that good, either). And it should also be mentioned that although some of those players on the roster looked good on paper, they weren't the kind of players you'd necessarily want: Corson and Malakhov are the examples I'm thinking of. Even so, the years that followed went from bad to worse in terms of player moves: Houle traded away what little the Habs had and roster was a complete mess by the time he and Vigneault were fired simultaneously. As for Trotz: I actually think he's a better coach than AV, but even he wouldn't have been able to do anything with the rosters the Habs iced in the two years that followed—not even Scotty Bowman could have saved those teams, they were that bad. Even though the Preds have been a "budget" team from the get-go, Dave Poile has done very well with the financial constraints he's had to work with. The Preds have always had good goaltending and a solid defence—it's only been their forward lines that could be described as a "dog's breakfast". Rejean Houle, on the other hand, was completely incompetent and ruined the Habs for years. By the time he was fired, the Habs roster wasn't just a dog's breakfast, it was dog barf. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alfstonker Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 "All told, the finals against the Kings showed me that AV has not really changed at all. He gets a lot out of certain players but when times get tough he has not cultivated that same confidence in other players to step up and fill in. And when the plan needs to change he is still too slow adjusting what he needs to." Really? In his FIRST season he gets to the SC final and "half" the team felt detached from his coaching. That is some coaching feat. You can't substantiate one word of that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Light Racicot Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 AV's greatest strength - being a players coach to and getting a lot out of his core favorite players. AV's greatest weakness - being too hard on his non favorites and never putting them in a position to succeed, which ultimately hurt the team. His was a double edged sword approach and you can see how it easily could have created some division in the room over time. All told, the finals against the Kings showed me that AV has not really changed at all. He gets a lot out of certain players but when times get tough he has not cultivated that same confidence in other players to step up and fill in. And when the plan needs to change he is still too slow adjusting what he needs to. He was a good coach here, with strengths and weaknesses like all others. He accomplished a lot that can never be taken away from him but it was really time for a change both for him and for the Canucks. He absolutely should have a place in Canucks history for what he accomplished but at the end of the day will be remembered for his failures as well. Such is the nature of coaching. As successful as he was, I found AV incredibly frustrating at times. Torts made AV seem like the greatest coach who ever lived in comparison; but theres no way I can forget how the team so often looked completely unprepared for some of the most important games with AV behind the bench. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sinphase Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 It was AV or Gillis and the wrong man got canned. Agreed. AV coached some of the best hockey in this franchise and made us a respectable team. I became a Rangers fan as soon as they hired him. Gillis was the GM and President, so firing AV was completely in his discretion. Now that those positions are separated between Benning and Linden, hopefully we won't lose a good coach to a GM or a President trying to hold on to their job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alfstonker Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 Agreed. AV coached some of the best hockey in this franchise and made us a respectable team. I became a Rangers fan as soon as they hired him. Gillis was the GM and President, so firing AV was completely in his discretion. Now that those positions are separated between Benning and Linden, hopefully we won't lose a good coach to a GM or a President trying to hold on to their job. Good point. Gillis was never going to fire himself. It must have been so frustrating for AV. Having said that, every day must have been a nightmare for Gillis knowing half the leagues GM's ignored your calls and the other half had you uncled. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wesley Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 Agreed. I am also a Rangers fan now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WZRD Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 AV sucks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.