Caps promote Brian Maclellan to GM and name Barry Trotz as coach

[stealth]

You're entitled to that opinion, but there are plenty of good coaches that haven't won. And there are many different genre of coaches, with Bylsma and Trotz being pretty different. You are supposed to win, you're right. But there's no coach that could've taken any of Nashville's rosters and made it a legitimate contender. Now, to that last point: I firmly believe that if Bylsma had been fired, he'd be in DC in a second. However, Trotz would have a job elsewhere. I respect the heck out of Trotz. They got some rough draws in the postseason, btw. Were in the path of a few Cup winners. Consider that the biggest names in team history outside of Weber/Rinne currently are: Suter, Legwand, Erat, Timonen, J.P freaking Dumont, Jason Arnott, Steve Sullivan, Scott Walker, I suppose you can say Peter Forsberg, etc. etc. They won with scrubs. A majority of those guys would be third liners on other squads, but they were first liners in Nashville. The winning they did was because of the coaching. They were coached up, they knew their role, they did it, and it worked. Unfortunately to really win in this league you need game breakers, of which they have none, and of which the Capitals have many.

okay fine but the Caps had coaches before and still didnt win, trotz isnt going to change anything that didnt happen under 4 previous tenures

 

[jstewismybastardson]

 

[pixburgher66]

okay fine but the Caps had coaches before and still didnt win, trotz isnt going to change anything that didnt happen under 4 previous tenures

His gameplan may end up having shades of other coaches, but the personnel has changed since most of those guys have been there. I'll let the guy get to town before I call him a failure. I will say this: if he has a horrible record in DC, I start looking at other places, because it's not the coach in that instance.

 

[stealth]

where are the other coaches?

 

[stealth]

His gameplan may end up having shades of other coaches, but the personnel has changed since most of those guys have been there. I'll let the guy get to town before I call him a failure. I will say this: if he has a horrible record in DC, I start looking at other places, because it's not the coach in that instance.

agree just like in Pitt and He won a cup and the players like him

 

[pixburgher66]

I'm forever grateful for the man and what he did in this town, but in the past few years of watching him, I've become convinced he had success because he was an unknown. He's known now, people prepare for it. Anyway, I digress. He's a good coach, but I don't think he's a great X's and O's guy. For the most part, when a timeout happens, it's the assistants calling a play.

 

[pixburgher66]

agree just like in Pitt and He won a cup and the players like him

I'm not sure what you're referencing, but I think it's that the issues in Pittsburgh are with the players/management and not the coaching? I don't think comparing the two places/situations works, so I won't go there.

 

[stealth]

im glad these coaching changes/events are taking place. We fans will have to wait for next season for a first year glimpse for coaches on new teams.

 

[DragonfromTO]

You're even forgetting the worst. The man outsmarted by a toaster

 

[Cobiemonster]

The debate of Barry Trotz/Dan Bylsma is interesting - you can make the case that the GM's faults in Pittsburgh effected Dan Bylsma because they overpaid certain contracts and that didn't give them the ability to have more depth and the drafting wasn't as good - you could make the case in Nashville that Barry Trotz did not have a great roster because they didn't spend to the cap and maybe David Poile's philosophy was too defensive centric

I think for Barry Trotz, he's going to be a tight knit type of coach who gets the team together for one common goal - whether that equates to a cup or whatever it may be, who knows, but that's their goal, to get back to being credible and have a coach that can stabilize things then he will make a difference

Head coaches these days for the most part are more of a quick fix - I think Barry Trotz is a stability type of coach where he might be there for a little while - Dan Bylsma's the type where if he goes elsewhere, he might be that spark a team needs in a matter of 2-3 years, then it's time to make an adjustment

Dan Bylsma was bad at adjustments and it does make a difference though, so maybe he needs to be on a team where the players are smart and realize that they need to make adjustments - but sometimes a coach also needs to learn his faults - maybe if Dan Bylsma goes elsewhere he learns something and maybe with a new cast of players he learns more about them and he can change because of the personnel

 

[elocomotive]

I have suggested this numerous times, but am often told by Caps fans that it is not even close to true.

I think Leonsis might be just involved enough to be a problem. This hire doesn't change my mind in any way.

I've never said it's not true. Truth is none of us know. But it does go against his management style and business practices that are pretty well established at this point.

Second point, while I'm not psyched about promoting an inside guy, it's tough for us to know how much he agree or disagreed with McPhee. For all we know, he's been telling Leonsis that he's disagreed with McPhee's decisions or approach for a while. After all, if he agreed with McPhee most/all the time and Leonsis just fired McPhee, then what would be the point of hiring him? I think it's worth a reminder that each person is his own man. I work for my boss at my job, but if I were in his position, I'd definitely do certain things very differently.

 

[elocomotive]

Also: I think Trotz has a lot to prove. I think he's an incredible coach, but he's been in the same place for so very long, always in the West, never with much star power. Heck, outside of Shea Weber there's not a guy I can think of who was beyond 'star' and into 'superstar'. I'm very intrigued to see how he's able to handle a guy like OV. I don't think that OV is a coach killer in that he's petulant and hard to work with, but I think he's an indirect coach killer in that he's tough to properly utilize in a team wide scheme. Look at the situation with Boudreau. They played to his strengths (wide open, high speed, etc.) and struggled, so they shifted ideology so that it didn't play to his strengths, and they still were beat. I think having some consistency will do them good, and I think Trotz will bring that. I'm pissed as a Pens fan because they're over here sitting on their ass about the coaching situation while a great option like Trotz is taken by a division rival.

Good post, Pix.

I think the thing I worry about is that doing decently without much talent (what he's done in Nashville by and large) isn't necessarily the same thing as taking a team to a championship level. So I wonder if Trotz is just the former or he can also be the latter.

I think Trotz will do well, but I hope he and the new GM are getting together and working on personnel changes together. If there is one thing we've struggled with over the past 3-4 years, it's identity. The coaches and GM were not on the same page and were asking for a hammer, and being given a screwdriver. That doesn't work.

 

[ritari330]

We'll have to see on MacLellan, but the hiring leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. The whole point of firing McPhee was to clean house and get a new perspective. Hiring the guy right under McPhee offers little to believe the perspective is going to change much. I'd have been more accepting of Don Sweeney (Boston Asst. GM) , Paul Fenton (Nashville Asst. GM) , or even Shero. All of those them were considered candidates in some fashion and all would have offered more than what anyone could within the organization. I hope MacLellan offers something new and fresh but I'm expecting little change. Hopefully I am wrong but I see this as a lateral move, at least in the front office.

Overall, I like the trotz hiring and I'm disappointed by the Maclellan hiring, even if it isn't because of him personally.

 

[forty_three]

I've never said it's not true. Truth is none of us know. But it does go against his management style and business practices that are pretty well established at this point.

Second point, while I'm not psyched about promoting an inside guy, it's tough for us to know how much he agree or disagreed with McPhee. For all we know, he's been telling Leonsis that he's disagreed with McPhee's decisions or approach for a while. After all, if he agreed with McPhee most/all the time and Leonsis just fired McPhee, then what would be the point of hiring him? I think it's worth a reminder that each person is his own man. I work for my boss at my job, but if I were in his position, I'd definitely do certain things very differently.

Not just you, my cousin(s) are pretty big Caps fans and they have the same opinion that Ted is hands off. I am still not sure about that. But he maybe just seem hands off by comparison locally (*cough*Snyder*cough*).

I guess this will give us the answer. If the new guy is just a yes man hired to maintain the status quo, then Ted's an interferer. If he really did disagree with GMGM and went to Ted about the need for change and Ted is giving him free reign then big changes will come.

I just hope for everyone's sake that Craig Laughlin is the first to go.

 

[IPostedWhat]

Everyone watching the Live Stream of the press conference going on right now?

Capitals Pulse | Comcast SportsNet Washington

 

[elocomotive]

Not just you, my cousin(s) are pretty big Caps fans and they have the same opinion that Ted is hands off. I am still not sure about that. But he maybe just seem hands off by comparison locally (*cough*Snyder*cough*).

I guess this will give us the answer. If the new guy is just a yes man hired to maintain the status quo, then Ted's an interferer. If he really did disagree with GMGM and went to Ted about the need for change and Ted is giving him free reign then big changes will come.

I just hope for everyone's sake that Craig Laughlin is the first to go.

LOL - some truth to that.

You can't get rid of Craig Laughlin - he's an institution. I used to not like him, but now that Joe B. is in the booth with him and makes fun of his homerism, they have a pretty good chemistry and are very entertaining.

 

[elocomotive]

Everyone watching the Live Stream of the press conference going on right now?

Capitals Pulse | Comcast SportsNet Washington

Thanks, IPW. I missed it live but caught the highlights. I liked what I heard, but everything always sounds good at the presser.

I do think that Trotz style/personality will lend itself to improving the things this team needs to improve. Everyone talks about Ovechkin and the big stars. I'm as curious to see what he can do with Carlson and Alzner. Alzner could really blossom to a top defensemen under this guy - he's the most underrated guy on the team.

 

[pixburgher66]

Good post, Pix.

I think the thing I worry about is that doing decently without much talent (what he's done in Nashville by and large) isn't necessarily the same thing as taking a team to a championship level. So I wonder if Trotz is just the former or he can also be the latter.

I think Trotz will do well, but I hope he and the new GM are getting together and working on personnel changes together. If there is one thing we've struggled with over the past 3-4 years, it's identity. The coaches and GM were not on the same page and were asking for a hammer, and being given a screwdriver. That doesn't work.

THIS. Very much so this. And I think Trotz is a stabilizing force. Obviously personnel changes need to be made too to help create that identity, but I think getting a solid leader like Trotz is a good start.

 

[pixburgher66]

We'll have to see on MacLellan, but the hiring leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. The whole point of firing McPhee was to clean house and get a new perspective. Hiring the guy right under McPhee offers little to believe the perspective is going to change much. I'd have been more accepting of Don Sweeney (Boston Asst. GM) , Paul Fenton (Nashville Asst. GM) , or even Shero. All of those them were considered candidates in some fashion and all would have offered more than what anyone could within the organization. I hope MacLellan offers something new and fresh but I'm expecting little change. Hopefully I am wrong but I see this as a lateral move, at least in the front office.

Overall, I like the trotz hiring and I'm disappointed by the Maclellan hiring, even if it isn't because of him personally.

It's funny that what you're saying is echoing my fears for the Pens. Pittsburgh sports radio brought up the point RE: Botterill being a candidate here. They explained it similarly though: "Everyone listens to their boss...just because he worked with him doesn't mean he agreed with everything...he'd do it differently", but my feelings are the same. It's not change really, and in the Pens case it reeks of ownership (or here Morehouse) wanting a yes man to do all their bidding. The scariest thing that's happening in Pittsburgh is that the GM will now need to answer to the CEO on everything, including hockey decisions. That's messed up, especially because our CEO is a politician, not a hockey mind. Keeping a guy from in-house just makes it seem too much about loyalty and not enough about winning.

 

[Cobiemonster]

Thanks, IPW. I missed it live but caught the highlights. I liked what I heard, but everything always sounds good at the presser.

I do think that Trotz style/personality will lend itself to improving the things this team needs to improve. Everyone talks about Ovechkin and the big stars. I'm as curious to see what he can do with Carlson and Alzner. Alzner could really blossom to a top defensemen under this guy - he's the most underrated guy on the team.

I do think he'll help John Carlson and Karl Alzner but I'm still not sure if they're the top pairing guys they need - they still need to go after someone in trade or free agency to shore things up

A full season of Kuzy should help them too on offense - I think the key eventually will be goaltending - Pekka Rinne and Braden Holtby is a big difference, even though Braden Holtby's had his moments of brilliance