The Tampa Bay Lightning welcomed Rob Zettler back to the organization this week, as they named him as the new Assistant Coach on Jon Cooper’s staff. Zettler, who was head coach of the organization’s American Hockey League affiliate in Syracuse from 2013 to 2016, re-joins the Lightning after having spent time with the San Jose Sharks in a similar position.
After Todd Richards decided to walk away from the Bolts following the team’s Stanley Cup victory, it was always a matter of when, not if, a hire like this would happen. While Zettler’s name likely wasn’t at the top of many fan-generated lists, it does represent a name that the organization is clearly comfortable with, and a name with which Cooper has a significant degree of familiarity.
Of course, comfort and familiarity doesn’t win hockey games. The Lightning will need Zettler to be a contributing member of the coaching staff, especially as he steps into a role in which Richards had marked success.
On that point, it’s difficult to pass much judgment on an assistant coaching given the esoteric nature of the role; however, it is probably fair to comment on the Lightning’s decision to cycle back to Zettler after firing him from Syracuse a few years ago. At that time, the Crunch were stale, prospects were stalling, and change was very much needed. Whether that was just a matter of a veteran coach reaching his shelf life with the organization, or something indicative of a bigger problem, is impossible to say. Julien BriseBois obviously must feel that it was the former.
With news that the NHL is likely to return for a shortened season starting next month, the wait to see whether Zettler can deliver in the role as Assistant Coach shouldn’t be too long.
As always, thanks for reading.