The St. Louis Blues stole the hockey headlines yesterday when they decided to part ways with their head coach, Ken Hitchcock, after five and a half years behind the bench. Projected to be one of the better teams in the Western Conference, the Blues currently find themselves outside of the playoff picture looking in.
After seeing another struggling franchise can their coach, it is tempting to develop the mindset that the Lightning should do the same thing. However, Tampa Bay would be making a serious mistake if they decided to part ways with Jon Cooper at this point in time.
Similar to the Blues, the Bolts have not had the season everyone imagined them having. Injuries, along with other factors, have Tampa Bay not only out of the playoff picture but very close to the bottom of the Eastern Conference.
When you are nowhere near meeting the high expectations bestowed upon you before the season began, it is normal to begin blaming the head coach. Although it is difficult to tell how much impact Cooper's coaching has had on this debacle, it is safe to say that there are definitely areas he can being doing better in.
Still, letting Cooper go in the middle of the season would be a reactionary decision, not a smart one. He has had a pretty impressive tenure with Tampa Bay, including two Eastern Conference Championship appearances and a trip to the Stanley Cup Final. If Cooper's seat is going to start getting hot, it will most likely start becoming more apparent if the Lightning get off to a slow start next season.
With the trade deadline less than a month away, it would not surprise me if Yzerman makes a big time move that indicates his focus is on next season. That move will not be, nor should it be, the firing of Jon Cooper.
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