Exactly how do they have a good team....? They have two top players. One (St Louis) is vastly overrated. Spotty goaltending. No quality defensemen. A bunch of old guys up front. This team could be decent if everything comes together.  Most likely they would be average. 5-7-5 is an indication of that. They sold this team like they would be great. NO WAY that would ever happen this year. Show me one team that just threw 10-15 new guys together and they were great from the get go....

Posted by kevin from boston on 11/20/08 at 01:31 PM ET

Good team, great team, whatever, the point is that they should have been a lot better than they are, and most of it is Melrose’s fault. He messed up everything. He had no idea how to handle any of his players, especially the big name guys like Vinny, St. Louis, and Stamkos. The Melrose experiment was an utter and complete failure, and with all the many problems in Tampa, he was the biggest problem, and thats pretty sad. If the owners hadn’t kicked Tortorella out, I guarantee this team would be a ton better than they are.

Posted by Kevin from Pittsburgh on 11/20/08 at 01:40 PM ET

Not normally one to dance on anyone’s grave.... but I’ll make an exception here.
The Mullet was never worth a squat as a coach other than having #99 on a team.
He shouldn’t have been hired in the first place. At least Tortorella had more than an expensive ugly suit and and empty Mullet sporting head.

Posted by MOWingsfan19 on 11/20/08 at 02:33 PM ET

Any team that trades Dan Boyle for Matt Carle and signs Gary Roberts is a joke. And since when is Stamkos a star.....? Joe Thornton scored 5 goals in his rookie year and he was alot better than Stamkos. As GM I would have assumed Stamkos was going to stink. To expect anything else you would have to be a moron

Posted by kevin from boston on 11/20/08 at 02:51 PM ET

As Gary Green has said, hockey is not a complicated game so I believe that it is the players which must be held accountable for their actions. As Melrose has said, they are all big boys and multi-millionaires to boot. Too bad if they do not like being called out after they play like crap. The captain should have said something to motivate his players and maybe take some of the blame for no goals being scored. Instead they just go storming up to the owner’s box and cry about the coach. This team will go down in flames before it gets any better. Being fired was the best thing that could have happened to Melrose. He came to a team that not only got older, but trades away one of the best d-men in the league, replaces him with an unknown quanitity and then signs Marek Malik ? Happiness is Tampa in the rear view mirror.

Posted by Mike from LI from LI, NY on 11/20/08 at 02:54 PM ET

Someone get this man a proofreader!

“couldn’t find away to rebound”

“Though it took time and a painful learning process; they respected Tortorella for the effort.”

“he was two tough on them”

My goodness.

Posted by Sunny from Raleigh, NC on 11/20/08 at 03:00 PM ET

Show me one team that just threw 10-15 new guys together and they were great from the get go....

apparently Herb Brooks through something together in 1980...entirely different circumstances I know, but it has happened.  Not that The Mullet could hold a candle to Herb Brooks in his prime.  In fact, that style of short-term gain, long-term pain kind of coaching has usually proven quite ineffective with the Pros.  But you tell me a better way of coaching to bring a team together?  If you can maybe Tampa will hire you...can I get some odds on that Coach Rick?

Posted by Animal Drew from A Nightmare on Helm Street on 11/20/08 at 03:00 PM ET