Article: Bill Guerin Should Install Himself As the Next Wild Head Coach

[Tom Schreier]

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[Kato AK]

I would be happy with either Pete Deboer, or Gerard Gallant.

[goenzoy]

They just need to do something as Hynes is awful 

They can't even win with a healthy roster 

[MNCountryLife]

I don't think this works at all.  Guerin does not strike me as a guy that can focus on two extremely different objectives at the same time.   That isn't necessarily a kick on a guy as a GM.  Some guys have the energy and ability to efficiently break up their day and compartmentalize their thoughts ... most don't.  

If he doesn't like Pete Deboer or anyone else hanging around I would hold up.  Let the year run its course and get the young guys to play.  Get a handshake deal for the off-season.

Edited Monday at 10:52 PM by MNCountryLife

[Enforceror]

Curious why everyone is of the mind that Hynes is not a good coach? Is it the lack of wins to start this season? First round exit last season? 4th line Rossi? Not playing the kids? All of the above?

 

[goenzoy]

20 minutes ago, Enforceror said:

First round exit last season?

It is his record .He  coached 26 play-off games with 3 different teams and lost 19.

Same with time and line management .It is just horrible

[Burnt Toast]

The league has changed and with it coaching. Just managing the assistant coaches is a full time job. BG could have pursued a coaching career but he chose upper management. I’d say the chance he gets behind the bench is about the same as Judd Brackett lacing them up. 

[Patrick]

This idea is like a high speed train wreck. We all know it will be a disaster but we kinda want to see it anyway.

[mnfaninnc]

Ok, here is the scene: Johansson decides to take one of his cardio shifts with a couple of weak turnovers and then his guy beats him to the net defensively and scores. What does Guerin do when he gets to the bench?

A. Blow a Gasket

B. Threaten to Trade Johansson During Intermission

C. Bench Him

D. Just Glare at Him and Give Him Another Shift

E. Look Stoic and Give Him His Next Shift

I really like the idea. When Lou did this, most of the time he did it with about 1/4 of a season left. But, if Hynes isn't getting it done, won't play the kids, and DeBoer or Gallant aren't the guys he wants to coach the team, then I think he should fire Hynes, put himself behind the bench and get a good first hand look at what's not working. Really, I think he would learn best this way, maybe even more than sitting in his suite upstairs.

It also seemed to me that Lou would do this after the TDL or right before when most of the trading and stuff was pretty much over. I think Guerin has a better feel for chemistry in the locker room than Fletcher ever did, and we've seen failed Fletcher twice now. Yes, he didn't lose his temper publicly, however, he also tried to acquire the right pieces, he just couldn't really get the right fits. Every time I think of it, I think of the disastrous trade for Hanzel of a guy who he got and completely wrecked the chemistry of the team. 

It might do Guerin well to see it from a different perspective and be able to tell his players in all honesty why he chose them to be there and what their roles were. He's loud and can get animated. I'm sure referees wouldn't enjoy coming to the bench on a contested call, or have to defend a bad one. I also think that he'd have no problem with the players having a meltdown game or 2 to change the narrative, and may even send a couple of them out there to fix the problems. I see Guerin's signature move of throwing water bottles on the ice. And, we would probably have a few unsportsmanlike bench penalties.

I also think Guerin would stick up for all of his players, especially if one is targeted.

[mnfaninnc]

https://giphy.com/gifs/train-wreck-oVM4SGyjdVlv2

33 minutes ago, Patrick said:

This idea is like a high speed train wreck. We all know it will be a disaster but we kinda want to see it anyway.

That was the best I could do. Not sure how to post the gifs inside. I guess I need a Fred tutorial.

[1Brotherbill]

Ok the narrative of BG signing players to NTC and NMC there is a guidline for this with the collective bargaining agreement.  If you are over 27 or have 7 years of pro hockey you are eligible for a NTC.  The league as a whole has 30% of the players with NTC.  That is out of all the players in the league 30% of them have a NTC.  That includes the players not eligible.  

What does that mean.  Well the GM and the Player work on the idea of having a NTC and more often than not they get the NTC.  So let's look at the number of players that the Wild has that have NTC attached to them.  Gus, Spurgeon, Middleton, Zucarello, Hartman, Foglino, Taresenko, Ek and Kaprizov all have a form of a NTC.  That is 9 out of the 23 man roster a bit higher than the 30% average to be sure.  But of the players with the NTC how many deserve it and how many has Guerin given out?  

The contracts that everyone has a hurt rear end about are the Middleton, Hartman and Foglino contracts.  Hartman has a Modified No Trade clause, which means he needs to provide a list of 15 teams to be traded to.  That contract for Hartman runs thru next year with the same conditions. Middleton has a No Move Clause this year and then three years of Modified No Trade clause like Hartman for three years.  Foglino has a No Trade Clause this year and then two years of Modified To Trade clause.  

The only contract that I see that is a burden on the Wild Cap and Roster is Spurgeon.  His contract is 7.5 million and has a Modified No Trade clause of 10 teams attached to it.  His skills have dropped off the table.  

People want Foglino gone and I don't blame them but for what he brings to the team on the ice is something that the Wild don't have anywhere in the system and anyone available at the 4 million cap hit would probably be worse. 

Middleton is another player that everyone wants run out of town on rails.  But he is a solid defender that makes few mistakes.  And once again an improvement at that position outside of the organization would be very hard to fill at 4.3 million a year.  We can revisit this in a few years because that is when the contract and the play will become a problem. 

Hartman is a first round pick that is solid, able to play on any line and produce.  People think he takes stupid penalties and sometimes he does but he does exactly what the team wants when they want it.  His contract is not a problem for the Wild. 

 

[Pewterschmidt]

35 minutes ago, mnfaninnc said:

https://giphy.com/gifs/train-wreck-oVM4SGyjdVlv2

That was the best I could do. Not sure how to post the gifs inside. I guess I need a Fred tutorial.

[MacGyver]

I think Billy has a way of "suggesting" things to his coaches which the coaches  follow. Playing Flower over Talbot in the St Louis series I always felt was a Billy call. Billy is the kind of guy who has to have his fingerprints on everything as long as there is plausible denial later. 

[Pewterschmidt]

9 minutes ago, MacGyver said:

as long as there is plausible denial later. 

This is the MO of the thin skinned tough guy.  Underneath all the bluster is a scared weasel

Edited Tuesday at 02:48 AM by Pewterschmidt

[greg]

All I know is we have basically thr same team for the past few seasons under Guerin.  Sure there are some differences but the core is basically the same.  Too slow and too much not showing up to play.  Guerjn built this team.  He has gone through 2 coaches and the third may be on thin ice.  Could it be possible that Guerin himself is the problem?

[Fezig]

A life size cardboard image of Glen Sonmor has a better chance of leading this club in the right direction than BG or Hynsey.

[FredJohnson]

Hire Lou Lamoreillo!!!

Problem solved.

[Imyourhuckleberry]

Quote

now that the worst of the Zach Parise-Ryan Suter cap penalties are over, Guerin hasn't shown himself able to swing tectonic-shifting trades mid-season. Most of the improvement must come from internal development.

Guerin has had zero opportunities to make "tectonic-shifting trades" where he would later have cap space to keep the players he might have traded for. He made reasonable trades at the deadline when he had a little cap space.

[Scalptrash]

15 hours ago, Enforceror said:

Curious why everyone is of the mind that Hynes is not a good coach? Is it the lack of wins to start this season? First round exit last season? 4th line Rossi? Not playing the kids? All of the above?

 

He wasn't hired because he's a great coach, he was hired because he's one of Billy's beer drinking buddies and Billy was lonely. That, and no one else was going to give him another chance. This is exactly why a Pete DeBoer will never be the coach of the Wild as long as Billy is here. Billy needs someone that he can control. A good, smart, competent coach will never allow the GM to mingle in the way they coach.

Everything goes back to Billy. The drafts, the prospects not playing, Iowa, player development, giving MN a bad reputation for free agents, demoting Rossi, cap hell, old vets, bad trades, zero improvement over six years, over extending and over paying old players, NMC's, etc. I really don't know why a lot of people can't see it. It's great to be an eternal optimist, but c'mon, this franchise is a train wreck. I think Chuck and Billy have pulled the wool over people's eyes for years, just to be perpetually mediocre. As long as they make the playoffs then everything is peachy, right?

[TCMooch]

I would love for GM Bill Guerin to be the next Wild coach because then it would probably expedite the process to finally firing this fucking idiot from all his positions with the Wild.

[Dis-allowed display name]

The guy that re-signs players well past their sell-by date will only give you more of those players as a coach.  I bet there is COVID era milk in his fridge.

Edited Tuesday at 03:31 PM by Dis-allowed display name

[mnfaninnc]

15 hours ago, 1Brotherbill said:

So let's look at the number of players that the Wild has that have NTC attached to them.

For clarification, I assume you mean NTC/NMC, not just NTC or, more simply, a contract designation?

[Enforceror]

1 hour ago, Scalptrash said:

He wasn't hired because he's a great coach, he was hired because he's one of Billy's beer drinking buddies and Billy was lonely. That, and no one else was going to give him another chance. This is exactly why a Pete DeBoer will never be the coach of the Wild as long as Billy is here. Billy needs someone that he can control. A good, smart, competent coach will never allow the GM to mingle in the way they coach.

Everything goes back to Billy. The drafts, the prospects not playing, Iowa, player development, giving MN a bad reputation for free agents, demoting Rossi, cap hell, old vets, bad trades, zero improvement over six years, over extending and over paying old players, NMC's, etc. I really don't know why a lot of people can't see it. It's great to be an eternal optimist, but c'mon, this franchise is a train wreck. I think Chuck and Billy have pulled the wool over people's eyes for years, just to be perpetually mediocre. As long as they make the playoffs then everything is peachy, right?

I'm not saying he IS a good coach just wanted to hear some opinions backed up by facts rather than speculation. As Wild fans, I think we tend to (obviously) focus on our team and only hear snippets from other teams. I'm tempted to closely follow a cup contender (Panthers, Oilers, etc.) and see what similarities/differences the organizations make. Off the top of my head I think the aging vets thing is done by most NHL teams. Not playing the kids may be a 50/50. etc etc.

Obviously the track record for the team is a clear indicator of performance. I do think making the playoffs every year means we have some success but yeah...it definitely is frustrating not being able to advance a round...

[Scalptrash]

6 minutes ago, Enforceror said:

I'm not saying he IS a good coach just wanted to hear some opinions backed up by facts rather than speculation. As Wild fans, I think we tend to (obviously) focus on our team and only hear snippets from other teams. I'm tempted to closely follow a cup contender (Panthers, Oilers, etc.) and see what similarities/differences the organizations make. Off the top of my head I think the aging vets thing is done by most NHL teams. Not playing the kids may be a 50/50. etc etc.

Obviously the track record for the team is a clear indicator of performance. I do think making the playoffs every year means we have some success but yeah...it definitely is frustrating not being able to advance a round...

I thought you were being sarcastic in your original post. You did a good job of listing all of his weaknesses.

[mnfaninnc]

5 minutes ago, Enforceror said:

Off the top of my head I think the aging vets thing is done by most NHL teams. Not playing the kids may be a 50/50. etc etc.

This is probably true. The teams playing the kids are typically up and comers or rebuilders. 

Why go after DeBoer? He's gotten teams to the finals a number of times. Florida took a shot at longtime coach Maurice who hadn't won anything and been around 3 other organizations. Then he delivers 3 SCF appearances in a row.

Queneville hadn't done anything either until he walked into Chicago at the right time and delivered 3 Cups. Perhaps DeBoer just hasn't had the right combination yet?