Follow @SpiegelSports Quick hit as it has been reported that Gerard Gallant has been relieved of his duties as head coach of the Florida Panthers.
This is a shocking turn of events to many, especially since last season was the best in franchise history.
But play on the ice has been inconsistent at best. After the Panthers raced out to a 2-0 lead in Carolina Sunday night they let their guard down for four minutes in the 2nd and let the Hurricanes score three unanswered goals that ended up being the difference in the game.
Apparently GM Tom Rowe and company had enough of squandering games and not getting more out of this roster they tweaked to fit "optimum analytics."
There is obviously much more to this story, and fittingly I and other Panther media will be covering the game Tuesday in Chicago and Thursday in Detroit. It will be interesting to see how everything is explained and the responses from the players.
Gallant was definitely a gracious, friendly person with the media and I wish him all the best. Assistant coach Mike Kelly has also been fired.
I won't speculate at this time as to my feelings on what caused this but will wait until I get confirmation in the coming days.
Rowe will be taking over behind the bench indefinitely to try to install consistency on this up and down club. Sunday was game one of a six-game road trip.
The Panthers are 11-10-1, are two points out of a playoff spot and five points out of third in the division. In a league with such parity, was this a knee-jerk reaction or the right move for Florida?
As always, I look forward to your thoughts/comments.
Dan Spiegel Florida Panthers Media Follow me on Facebook Follow me on Twitter Join the Florida Panthers Insiders FB Page Connect with me on Google Plus