Ken Hitchcock, who turns 60 on Dec. 17, is 533-350-70 with 88 ties in 1,041 NHL games as a head coach with the Stars, Flyers and Blue Jackets, winning the Stanley Cup in 1999 with Dallas (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
There is a rule good general managers adhere to: Don't fire your coach without lining up a strong replacement. Ken Hitchcock was not that guy in Columbus, but he is in St. Louis.
As rumours swirled that Hitchcock, still being paid $1.3 million US by Ohio's team, was coming back behind the bench in Columbus, a few sources strongly denied that was going to happen. Despite the Blue Jackets' nightmarish start, there was serious debate about whether or not a Hitchcock return would have made anything better.
Hitchcock lasted just 58 games after leading the Jackets to their one and only playoff appearance. That alone should tell you there was something seriously wrong between him and the players. With confidence in Columbus already at a record low, I don't see how a reunion would have led to anything better. It wouldn't have been fair to anyone, including Hitchcock.
Saner heads saw this, which is why, when Blues GM Doug Armstrong called for permission Sunday afternoon, it was granted.
This is a much smarter play for Armstrong than it would be for Jackets GM Scott Howson. Hitchcock doesn't have the same history with [most of] the Blues, giving him -- and the team -- a better chance at success.
Two other storylines of note:
First, does Armstrong make this move without an ownership change looming? Prospective buyer Matthew Hulsizer is in bed with former Tampa Bay Lightning owner
Oren Koules, which leads to speculation that former Lightning GM Brian Lawton has his eyes on the front office.
No matter how bad an idea that may be, Armstrong can't afford a down year. He knows Hitchcock well (considered bringing him back for a second tour in Dallas) and clearly said, "If I'm going to go down, I'm going down with my guy."
Second, hopefully every organization, including the Blue Jackets, looks back at what happened in Columbus the last couple of weeks and says, "That's not going to happen again." A fired coach should never be around as much as Hitchcock was. (A friend of Hitchcock's called me after Mike Milbury blasted him on the Hotstove and said ownership wanted him at practices and games in a consultant-type role.)
Whatever the case, it was a distraction. An enormous one.
In the future, both the coach and the team should set it up this way: Have him scout. Have him write reports on opponents or potential trade/free agency prospects. Have him available by phone if you need to ask a question.
But don't have him at the rink -- not fair to incumbent head coach Scott Arniel, to Hitchcock, to Howson, to anyone.
30 THOUGHTS
1. A few tweeters asked how Hitchcock's contract works. If St. Louis is paying him any less than $1.3 million, Columbus must make up the difference. Some of you followed up with, "What stops the Blues from paying him, say, $1?" Good question. What I didn't realize until last night is the NHL has a formula for this. St. Louis must give him the average salary (at least) of all the coaches with similar experience.
2. Hitchcock's coached 1,042 NHL games. So we're talking Lindy Ruff (who just got a new contract), Paul Maurice, Joel Quenneville (also a recent new deal) and Terry Murray. Not sure if Ron Wilson (300 more games), Jacques Martin (200 more) or Barry Trotz (100 less) are in that mix. But you have to think Columbus can't be paying much, if anything.
3. Arniel's defenders say he hasn't had his full team. (The Jackets' two biggest off-season acquisitions, James Wisniewski and Jeff Carter, haven't played a game together). The loyalty to him is admirable because a lot of teams would have done something after Saturday's ugly loss in Philly. But with Carter getting closer to a return, you can't imagine the coach has a ton of time.
4. The question, however? Who would be the replacement if it gets to that point? Howson's Edmonton connection made me wonder about Craig MacTavish, but he doesn't have an in-season out. (AHL coaches generally don't, although it would ultimately be Vancouver's decision).
5. Rick Nash: Full no-move clause next three seasons. Teams who have asked are being told, "He has not asked to be traded and will not be traded."
6. Dave Campbell's been a Bauer skate rep for 20 years. Last summer, for the first time, he was invited to a player's Stanley Cup party. That player: Chris Kelly of the Bruins.
7. One week after the Hotstove report on re-alignment, some interesting fallout. Had one GM, basically, say I'm on crack, that this will never happen. Other sources say they think the Pittsburgh/Philadelphia problem is being worked out and will be solved. What's clear is that some teams are fighting this very hard.
8. Both the NHL and federal government threw the cone of silence over the meeting between Gary Bettman and finance minister Jim Flaherty. (They met in Manhattan the week of Oct. 24. At least the NHL returns emails, unlike the political party I voted for). Educated guess: with the league looking for new buildings in Edmonton, Calgary, Quebec City and, eventually, southwestern Ontario, Bettman felt out Flaherty's interest in contributing. It's highly unlikely, but you can't fault the commissioner for trying.
9. With all of these questions about what Detroit is going to do, remember one thing about Ken Holland. He believes in American Thanksgiving -- as in, that's when you really know your team.
10. Is there a coaching staff that does a better job than Phoenix's? Dave Tippett added two new assistants this year in Jim Playfair and John Anderson and still the team continues to play hard-edged, highly disciplined hockey that makes it so much better than the sum of its parts.
11. If the Coyotes make the playoffs, though, the NHL's coach of the year should be Sean Burke. Burke -- tall and lean -- targeted Mike Smith in free agency, partially because they have similar builds. He felt he could work with that. Clearly, Smith believes in Burke, too, looking good after a rough season in which he spent time in the AHL.
12. I remember a CFL coach saying, "When your team is struggling, the most popular guy in town is the backup quarterback." We're seeing that in Buffalo with Jhonas Enroth and Ryan Miller. Sabres were in a 1-4 funk that finished with Miller getting pulled against the Flyers. Enroth came off the bench to win two straight.
13. Miller's peers, however, really think highly of him. "I just love the way he plays," said Nikolai Khabibulin of the Oilers. "Every time he slides on the ice, [he] just looks very smooth." Probably one of the most sound goaltenders in the league," added Carey Price of the Canadiens. "I think Miller's the complete package."
14. Two things Price and Martin Brodeur of the Devils agreed on: When you're struggling, you must practise well. And they, [respectfully], cannot understand how Henrik Lundqvist is so successful playing as deep as he does. It's totally foreign to them.
15. Khabibulin on Brodeur: "Mentally, he's probably the best I've ever seen ... he's got a lot of games where he has to face 14, 15, 20 shots and the team's not scoring ... he has to come up with that one save and he seems to be able to do it his whole career."
16. Brodeur wouldn't come right out and say it, but indicated he wants to play again next year. Asked which goalie he likes watching, he immediately picked Pekka Rinne.
17. Very interesting reactions to Rinne's new deal with Nashville. "Statement contract," said one exec. "Fair deal for both sides," said another. That seems to be the majority opinion. Saw some media claiming that $7 million is too much for a goalie, but I disagree here. This is not just about a goalie. This is about a franchise that becomes the Kansas City Royals or Pittsburgh Pirates if it doesn't get at least one of Rinne/Suter/Weber signed and soon.
18. One agent explained why Rinne was the most signable. Since the lockout, the largest UFA deal for a goaltender is four years and $27 million for Khabibulin in Chicago. (Technically, Ilya Bryzgalov never hit the market). High-level defencemen tend to do much better. That gave Rinne more incentive a take a big-money contract sooner. However, if they didn't get it done in the very near future, he was going to stop negotiating and take his chances. Wisely, the Predators got it done.
19. Canadiens fans are asking, "How does this affect Price?" Well, the first thing to recognize is that he's not a UFA, so he doesn't have quite the leverage. Second, Rinne's contract cannot be used if Price goes to arbitration because UFA deals are not allowed as comparables. I think the Canadiens will take care of Price (and they should), but maybe not at that level.
20. Price's Remembrance Day mask already has a bid for $5,000 on it at legendsdepot.com and he hasn't even worn it yet. His previous mask -- pink for cancer awareness -- raised $20,000. Pretty impressive stuff.
21. Watching Capitals' Bruce Boudreau and Alexander Ovechkin reminds me of Scotty Bowman and Steve Yzerman doing battle in 1994. Boudreau doesn't have Bowman's pedigree, but Ovechkin should know short-term pain turned into long-term gain for Yzerman.
22. We expect players to care as much as we do, so we can't rip them if they react angrily to being benched in critical moments (Ovechkin) or if they temporarily forget the cliches after a loss (Joe Thornton calling the Rangers "soft"). New York is 3-0 since Thornton said that, which can't be a coincidence. John Tortorella's probably reminding them before every period.
23. One of the interesting things about Andy Sutton's disciplinary hearing? It was entered into evidence that Gabriel Landeskog suffered a broken nose. The rookie hasn't missed any games and blamed himself for keeping his head down, but I don't think Sutton was very happy. I had no problem with the suspension, though, because Sutton's history mattered much more than the injury.
24. Apparently, Sutton is very tight with Shane O'Brien, who fought him immediately. Guess that's why O'Brien looked like he wanted no part of the fight. He understood it had to happen, but you could tell his heart wasn't into it.
25. Jim Hughson caught this, but one of the signs Toronto coaches aren't happy with Luke Schenn: his penalty-killing time is down. Last season, Schenn led the team in shorthanded time per game (2:44). This year, he's fourth and you can see Jake Gardiner earning more time in that situation.
26. Asked Zach Parise of the Devils what he would think if a coach told him, "I see you as a full-time centre." Parise smiled politely, which was an answer in itself. He likes the wing better.
27. Parise's teammate, Ilya Kovalchuk, asked if he could continue playing 26, 27 minutes per game for an entire season: "Sure, why not?" Kovalchuk currently leads all forwards at 25:30, three minutes more than Corey Perry of the Ducks. (Three minutes!) Kovalchuk led the league last year, but that was 22:33/game.
28. Still with the Devils, Adam Larsson (my Calder pick) on which player has impressed him most so far in his young career: "Keith Yandle ... so smooth and makes simple plays look easy."
29. Josh Gorges of the Canadiens said he had a lengthy conversation with assistant coach Randy Ladouceur about simplifying his game. You could see Gorges pressing -- trying to do so much -- when Montreal was struggling early.
30. If you haven't read it, check out Nick Cotsonika's piece on the debate over concussions There are doctors pushing back against the claims being made about damage from hits to the head. I've done a lot of concussion work, but this Sports Illustrated article in particular made me stop and think.
Elliotte Friedman
Elliotte joined CBC in October 2003 and is a commentator with Hockey Night in Canada.
As part of his duties with Hockey Night in Canada, Friedman hosts Inside Hockey, a feature airing every Saturday during Scotiabank Hockey Tonight that tells the stories of the people and places that shape the game of hockey. Always committed to giving viewers the inside story, fans call follow him throughout the regular season and playoffs on Twitter.
