they just did not like him. He was to hard on them. I mean if you were not playing he bench your ass. That is what the Isles need. A coach with a set to bench guys for a period or so when they do something wrong. Instead of babying them and patting them on the butt saying it is ok
- kasperrko

Torts is not the right coach for this team.

XxNYIxX

Could have fooled me

they are so trying to write that guy off it is not even funny. In fact I love it. He was not around the team and PRESTO we are in the playoffs. things that make you go hmmmmmmmmmm...........
- kasperrko

We shall see if he gets invited to camp.

XxNYIxX

they just did not like him. He was to hard on them. I mean if you were not playing he bench your ass. That is what the Isles need. A coach with a set to bench guys for a period or so when they do something wrong. Instead of babying them and patting them on the butt saying it is ok
- kasperrko

Hardass coaches have a shelf life. Be it Torts or Hitchcock or Keenan.

Sooner or later, the players tune them out.

You'll get immediate improvement, but over time it loses its effectiveness.

He kept him on for 5 seasons, 3 of which we went to the playoffs... just saying

XxNYIxX
- XxNYIxX

"Made the playoffs" is worse than "finished last"....unless you make the playoffs and do something in the playoffs. It's different when you have a core of young guys who are learning to win. When you have a rag tag bunch of mediocre veterans, you're making the playoffs to get embarrassed in round one on a yearly basis. I'd rather have the draft pick, thanks....I'm guessing that's how Snow looked at it, after he was unsuccessful in his effort to keep Smyth here. Now we are in position to "make the playoffs" for a whole bunch of years in a row, starting within the next couple of seasons....and I'll bet we won't get dumped in the first round every year, either...

I'm a Leafs fan, so I will typically drink heavily at hockey games.
- Atomic Wedgie

To dull the pain?

We shall see if he gets invited to camp.

XxNYIxX
- XxNYIxX

Which camp are you talking about? The one where he teaches the kids to play goalie

"Made the playoffs" is worse than "finished last"....unless you make the playoffs and do something in the playoffs. It's different when you have a core of young guys who are learning to win. When you have a rag tag bunch of mediocre veterans, you're making the playoffs to get embarrassed in round one on a yearly basis. I'd rather have the draft pick, thanks....I'm guessing that's how Snow looked at it, after he was unsuccessful in his effort to keep Smyth here. Now we are in position to "make the playoffs" for a whole bunch of years in a row, starting within the next couple of seasons....and I'll bet we won't get dumped in the first round every year, either...
- dcb1

after not making the playoffs for over 7 seasons, 3 years in was a BIG deal.

XxNYIxX

Which camp are you talking about? The one where he teaches the kids to play goalie
- kasperrko

I see what you did there...

If you mean Poulin & Nilsson as "kids", then you are correct.

See what I did there?

XxNYIxX

I see what you did there...

If you mean Poulin & Nilsson as "kids", then you are correct.

See what I did there?

XxNYIxX
- XxNYIxX

I was actually talking about that goalie clinic camp he had. I don't want him teaching Poulin or Nilsson anything

Shouldn't he still call Greg Sherman since he's the GM?

XxNYIxX
- XxNYIxX

I guess he could if he wants to waste 20 seconds while he gets transferred to Roy's office

after not making the playoffs for over 7 seasons, 3 years in was a BIG deal.

XxNYIxX
- XxNYIxX

Not to me- didn't get us a building, didn't make us better, didn't do anything. The only thing it did was give us one exciting playoff series against Toronto, that's it. The other times they made the playoffs, they got embarrassed, and looked like they didn't care, to be honest. This time, because we KEPT this round's Spezza, Chara, McCabe, Bertuzzi, Luongo, Jokinen, etc., we will move forward, we will be good for quite a while, and we will no longer be a laughing stock. Not that you CAN'T trade assets- but you can't just trade them for whatever, it has to be the right deal. Milbury lost patience too easily and undervalued EVERY asset he had, except for third round draft picks....he seemed to use those wisely, for whatever reason...

He kept him on for 5 seasons, 3 of which we went to the playoffs... just saying

XxNYIxX
- XxNYIxX

you arent really sticking up with milbury are you?

16. Nikita Zadorov, Defense, London (OHL)

Zadorov is an elite physical player who possesses many tools for future success. He has a 6'5", 220-pound frame, and he is unusually strong for a player his age. He uses it to his advantage, as he loves to take the body and land highlight reel hits. He skates at an above-average to plus level, which is significant for a player at his size. He can close gaps remarkably well. The rest of his game is not as impressive, but he could be a fine puck mover and positional defender. Scouting sources have divided opinion on both of those fronts. He has improved as the OHL season has progressed. He shows ability to move the puck and make good reads in his own end, but his decision making is not always perfect. He possesses some offensive upside, but it is likely more in the average range.

Ranking explanation: Prospects such as Pavel Buchnevich, Adam Erne, and Valentin Zykov all possess a slight-to-moderate talent deficit in comparison to Zadorov, making this spot a clear tier divider. The closest to infiltrating that tier is Buchnevich, as he shows flashes of a true top-level prospect with his great hands, hockey sense, and speed. Still, he is not well rounded enough for me to confidently project him as a top line player.

Soooo...anybody?

I guess he could if he wants to waste 20 seconds while he gets transferred to Roy's office
- Vukota

As long as he's not the GM, he's not making trades..


the...


wait for it....



GM is.

XxNYIxX

P.S. that whole situation sounds like Wang's committee, wonder if Neil Smith could work under those conditions?

Not to me- didn't get us a building, didn't make us better, didn't do anything. The only thing it did was give us one exciting playoff series against Toronto, that's it. The other times they made the playoffs, they got embarrassed, and looked like they didn't care, to be honest. This time, because we KEPT this round's Spezza, Chara, McCabe, Bertuzzi, Luongo, Jokinen, etc., we will move forward, we will be good for quite a while, and we will no longer be a laughing stock. Not that you CAN'T trade assets- but you can't just trade them for whatever, it has to be the right deal. Milbury lost patience too easily and undervalued EVERY asset he had, except for third round draft picks....he seemed to use those wisely, for whatever reason...
- dcb1

Since when is the GM supposed to get the team a building??


XxNYIxX

16. Nikita Zadorov, Defense, London (OHL)

Zadorov is an elite physical player who possesses many tools for future success. He has a 6'5", 220-pound frame, and he is unusually strong for a player his age. He uses it to his advantage, as he loves to take the body and land highlight reel hits. He skates at an above-average to plus level, which is significant for a player at his size. He can close gaps remarkably well. The rest of his game is not as impressive, but he could be a fine puck mover and positional defender. Scouting sources have divided opinion on both of those fronts. He has improved as the OHL season has progressed. He shows ability to move the puck and make good reads in his own end, but his decision making is not always perfect. He possesses some offensive upside, but it is likely more in the average range.

Ranking explanation: Prospects such as Pavel Buchnevich, Adam Erne, and Valentin Zykov all possess a slight-to-moderate talent deficit in comparison to Zadorov, making this spot a clear tier divider. The closest to infiltrating that tier is Buchnevich, as he shows flashes of a true top-level prospect with his great hands, hockey sense, and speed. Still, he is not well rounded enough for me to confidently project him as a top line player.

Soooo...anybody?
- eichiefs9

yes please!

you arent really sticking up with milbury are you?
- LetsGoIsles

Where did I stick up for MM? people said that Wang kept him too long, 5 Seasons with 3 of those seasons making the playoffs is not too long.

If you want to say he should have been fired before Wang ever got there.. then sure.. ill agree with that... but Wang took over the team, a team that had missed the playoffs for 6 seasons, they missed one year under Wang then made the playoffs for the next 3 years... hard to axe a guy that made something happen.

So I contest that Wang kept MM longer then he should have, He kept the man that was getting his job done & when it showed that he had nothing left in his bag of tricks.. he let him go.

XxNYIxX

Where did I stick up for MM? people said that Wang kept him too long, 5 Seasons with 3 of those seasons making the playoffs is not too long.

If you want to say he should have been fired before Wang ever got there.. then sure.. ill agree with that... but Wang took over the team, a team that had missed the playoffs for 6 seasons, they missed one year under Wang then made the playoffs for the next 3 years... hard to axe a guy that made something happen.

So I contest that Wang kept MM longer then he should have, He kept the man that was getting his job done & when it showed that he had nothing left in his bag of tricks.. he let him go.

XxNYIxX
- XxNYIxX

this is the ultimate rationalization...

he set back the organization for years, he just covered your eyes while he was doing it..

16. Nikita Zadorov, Defense, London (OHL)

Zadorov is an elite physical player who possesses many tools for future success. He has a 6'5", 220-pound frame, and he is unusually strong for a player his age. He uses it to his advantage, as he loves to take the body and land highlight reel hits. He skates at an above-average to plus level, which is significant for a player at his size. He can close gaps remarkably well. The rest of his game is not as impressive, but he could be a fine puck mover and positional defender. Scouting sources have divided opinion on both of those fronts. He has improved as the OHL season has progressed. He shows ability to move the puck and make good reads in his own end, but his decision making is not always perfect. He possesses some offensive upside, but it is likely more in the average range.

Ranking explanation: Prospects such as Pavel Buchnevich, Adam Erne, and Valentin Zykov all possess a slight-to-moderate talent deficit in comparison to Zadorov, making this spot a clear tier divider. The closest to infiltrating that tier is Buchnevich, as he shows flashes of a true top-level prospect with his great hands, hockey sense, and speed. Still, he is not well rounded enough for me to confidently project him as a top line player.

Soooo...anybody?
- eichiefs9

If he's still there, sounds like something we can use

XxNYIxX

this is the ultimate rationalization...

he set back the organization for years, he just covered your eyes while he was doing it..
- LetsGoIsles

No you are talking in hind sight.

XxNYIxX

As long as he's not the GM, he's not making trades..


the...


wait for it....



GM is.

XxNYIxX

P.S. that whole situation sounds like Wang's committee, wonder if Neil Smith could work under those conditions?
- XxNYIxX

Roy is on record saying that he will be the one talking to other GM's about making trades. The so called GM now will make the call and everybody will think he actually made the trade but it sounds like Roy is gonna have a huge say in those matters more so then the GM himself. So I'm gonna stick with what he is saying. I know it sounds crazy but that's what I'm gonna do

Got to admit though, snow is a genius. Look what he did in a half of season

Oh and lets not forget that memorable interview with Howie Rose when Howie asked about getting a power forward for Tavares. Snow thought Boyes was perfect for that role. Obviously Garth has not watch much hockey lately
- kasperrko

Not for nothing but what exactly did you expect the guy to say? "Yeah, you're right Howie. Boyes sucks and were actively looking to replace him him with just the type of guy you're talking about" ? You, and Howie, maybe wanted to hear it, and it may have even been true, but it wasn't going to happen. Not in the middle of the season when the team needed to get as much out of Boyes as it could. And if Rose expected to get anything out of him on the subject, he's a bigger idiot than I thought. I personally thought he started to look silly pushing Snow when he obviously wasn't going to get the answer he wanted. Unfortunately all it did was piss Snow off and it's kind of hard to blame him.

Not for nothing but what exactly did you expect the guy to say? "Yeah, you're right Howie. Boyes sucks and were actively looking to replace him him with just the type of guy you're talking about" ? You, and Howie, maybe wanted to hear it, and it may have even been true, but it wasn't going to happen. Not in the middle of the season when the team needed to get as much out of Boyes as it could. And if Rose expected to get anything out of him on the subject, he's a bigger idiot than I thought. I personally thought he started to look silly pushing Snow when he obviously wasn't going to get the answer he wanted. Unfortunately all it did was piss Snow off and it's kind of hard to blame him.
- PeteM

Well said

No but he may just take a coaching job if he doesn't have an offer as GM/coach?
- Cptmjl

It's a recipe for disaster though if things don't go well.

Hardass coaches have a shelf life. Be it Torts or Hitchcock or Keenan.

Sooner or later, the players tune them out.

You'll get immediate improvement, but over time it loses its effectiveness.
- Atomic Wedgie

Hitch is probably done next season if the Blues do not make the conf final.

glove_was_stuck