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The Pittsburgh Penguins are beginning to narrow down their coaching search and it should be in the very near future when the ultimately decide who will lead the team in 2014-15. I think the announcement could come as soon as tomorrow. Many of the Penguins bigger announcements have come on a Friday in recent memory.
One guy who has shot up the list in recent days is Texas Stars and newly minted Calder Cup Champion Willie Desjardins.
I am not a person who thinks that hiring a coach with NHL head coaching experience is a must. Truth be told a lot of the coaches with NHL coaching experience who are available haven't really done a great job and I don't trust that they have a grasp on today's more progressive philosophies. I don't believe that the game of hockey magically changes when you jump from the AHL level to the NHL. Conceptually it is all the same, the difference is in the talent levels of the players.
This is why I am not concerned about Desjardins experience (or lack thereof) in the NHL.
What I am interested in is his style of play and his ability to communicate, both seem appealing.
In 2 years under Willie Desjardins, the Texas Stars outscored their opponents 509-398 and outshot them 5273-4281. Pretty dominant team.
— Adam Gretz (@AGretz) June 19, 2014
One of the quotes from his article from the Texas Stars Travis Morin caught my eye the most:
“Willie likes to attack and push the pace, and it’s the same with practice,… Morin said. “We go short and fast, but when we’re out there, we’re going. We’ve been a fast-paced team since he got here.…
I believe the best way to play defense in today's NHL is to be the assertive team and push the play, not sit back and hope for the best. His intense practices would put to rest the notion of a "country club atmosphere".
Desjardins is supposedly very good communicator who works well with younger players. Considering the Penguins will need to start using younger players in an effort to save cap space this seems like a good trait for the new coach to have.
Communication is everything when being a professional coach. Gone are the days of a dictator yelling at players and shaming them into fixing mistakes. Modern athletes do not function under that environment. It is not enough to know what you are doing, you also need to understand how to convey that message along.
I don't need vast NHL experience with the Penguins next coaching hire, I just need a guy who understands the modern day hockey player.
It's believed Willie Desjardins has made his way to Pittsburgh. He's the frontrunner for the coaching job but a deal needs to be finalized.
— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) June 20, 2014
If it happens to be Desjardins who gets the job I think the Penguins will have done a decent job by avoiding the "comfort food" coaching choices,aka retreads like Marc Crawford, Ron Wilson etc.. Comfort food feels really good at the time of consuming it, but the real consequences aren't too far off in the future.
I like the risk reward of hiring a guy like Desjardins. His credentials hit all the right marks for the kind of coach I would want.
Consider me on #TeamDesjardins
Thanks for reading!
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