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Ray Ferraro on Pierre Turgeon: "Players...will find his ideas make sense."

July 11, 2017, 11:24 AM ET [25 Comments]
Sheng Peng
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20 years ago, bringing in Pierre Turgeon to provide some offense would've been beyond exciting. Now? Well, it's still intriguing.

Yesterday, Los Angeles hired the NHL's 34th 500-goal scorer as an assistant coach. Luc Robitaille described Turgeon's role as being "strictly dedicated to...'Offensive Coordinator.'"

While this is the first time that the club has employed a coach officially in this capacity, Turgeon's job description is reminiscent of Bernie Nicholls's consultancy under Darryl Sutter from 2012-14.

In theory, for the goal-starved Kings, hiring an offensive mastermind like Turgeon is just what the doctor ordered. However, there is some question as to whether or not the 1987 first-overall pick will be able to translate his on-ice vision to off-the-ice teaching.

Turgeon has no obvious coaching track record, so we'll have to defer to Robitaille and Rob Blake's judgment here. Blake did skate with the playmaker for a season in Colorado.

Ray Ferraro of TSN was quick to endorse the hire:




I spoke with Ferraro, who played with Turgeon on the New York Islanders from 1991-95. He added these thoughts:

I don't know Pierre as a coach, I know him as a teammate and a person.

As a player, he was always really creative -- always able to see the next pass or the next play. He was always explaining on the bench to his linemates where he needed them to go so he could get them the puck. He's a terrific person. The players will find him very easily accessible, they will find his ideas make sense too, which is important in buying credibility with guys that don't know Pierre.

He was also an excellent face-off guy, and will be a resource there too.


An approachable future Hall of Famer who can sensibly communicate creative, perhaps difficult offensive concepts? This suggests that "Sneaky Pete" will succeed in his new role.

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