Other sources have Quinn headed to Ottawa, maybe he can coach both teams!

http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/2009/01/07/senators_hartsburg_quinn_murray/

Posted by Paul from Motown Area on 01/07/09 at 05:41 PM ET

Yeah, I read that as well… I’m talking to some of my colleagues, he may not be headed to Ottawa as fast as they think…  We’ll see…

Posted by Tony F from Virginia Beach, VA on 01/07/09 at 05:46 PM ET

Please, lord, replace Michael Therrien.  That man is an idiot and I think the Pens would be much better off if they replace him sooner rather than later.  Pat Quinn is a good coach, I have always liked his style, and I think he would be a good fit in Pittsburgh.

Posted by John from Pittsburgh, PA (Wings fan for life!) on 01/07/09 at 06:11 PM ET

Oh dear, the Penguins are a “whopping” “one” points out of playoff position. They have “only” “half” the season left to get back into the playoff picture.

There’s no way that missing would-be All-Stars Ryan Whitney and Sergei Gonchar, absent 80% and 100% of the Penguins’ season thus far, respectively, could have any bearing on the increase in GA/G from 2.58 (07-08, 10th) to 2.98 (08-09, 25th), or that their missing puck-moving abilities could be at all responsible for the Penguins’s going from 2.93 GF/G (07-08, 7th) to “just” 2.95 (08-09, 9th), even as one of the deepest down-the-middle trios of Crosby, Malkin, and Staal have managed to increase their total Point-per-game contribution from 2.99 to 3.29, last season to this one.

Boo. Hoo.

Though it would be funny if they did worse in their post-Finals season than the Sens did. There’s always something between these two teams, when they meet, and where they go completely independent of each other.

Posted by SENShobo from Waterloo, ON on 01/07/09 at 06:28 PM ET

You know whats real funny…how good the Sens are doing this year

I haven’t been a fan of Therrien and always hated how he coached, but why is this whole slump of the Pens being blamed on him. Last year when he took them to the Stanley Cup Finals everyone thought he was great, but now that the Pens aren’t playing good and with all the injuries, everyone wants him gone. It’s only a matter of time before the Penguins are back and soaring and the game against Atlanta might be a sign of good things soon.

I wouldn’t mind seeing Therrien go, but everything shouldn’t be blamed and put on his shoulders

Posted by JJ from PA on 01/07/09 at 07:59 PM ET

Michel is a “starter coach”. He can get a group of young players up and going, get them to the playoffs, and get them believing in themselves. But he doesn’t have the patience, wits, and tactical mind to continue nurturing a team once they’ve “grown up”.

Well, after the playoff run last season, the Pens are grown up. They don’t need a “dad” type coach like Therrien. They need a coach that will put them in positions to win tactically, and knows when to push them and when to ease up on them. This is what made Scotty Bowman the best coach in the history of professional sports, and is why Mike Babcock has been so successful in what is a relatively short NHL career, thus far.

Shero just needs to keep cool and not make the traditional Detroit Lions mistake—go from a hard-ass coach that grinds on the players to a total players coach that is too easy on them. For instance, you cannot go from Michel Therrien to say Dave Lewis—a guy that’s a straight-up players coach, as fans in Detroit and Boston will tell you. Bless Lewis, he’s got a great hockey mind, but he’s not a good head coach because he allows himself to be on the same level as the players.

I know on the surface this will sound crazy, but I’m going to suggest it anyways. How about John Tortorella? I know, from his blow-ups in the media he seems like the type of coach that would be too similar to Therrien—a total task-master that never lets up on his club.

But I think the Pens would respect him right off the bat because he has a fat ring on his finger. You can’t tune it out when a new coach comes in wearing bling. Furthermore, the team he took to the Cup is pretty similar to the current Pens team. A couple of young stars up front with great skill, some underrated second-tier players to complement them, and a vastly underrated defense with a couple good puck-movers. And a really good goalie.

I don’t think that Torts is really a guy that pushes his players too hard. I think he knows how to balance it, like Mike Babcock or Lindy Ruff. I think that in his last season or two in Tampa he just lost it. Ownership and the salary cap were holding Jay Feaster hostage—they couldn’t upgrade their goaltending. As such, you have a coach that has to try and win with journeymen keepers and career backups. As good as Babcock and Ruff have been, look at the teams they’ve been with. Babcock doesn’t have to worry about the level of talent he has in his locker room, so he can just coach the guys. Ruff is with a small-market team, but he’s always had good goalies (the great equalizer, for sure) and his club, for all their financial shortcomings, has provided him a steady stream of quality young talent since he’s been the coach. That makes it heck of a lot easier to be a good coach.

Tortorella has proven his worth, IMO. I think it’s surprising he’s still on the sidelines. I think GMs are scared of him because he’s so brutally honest. But if you look at his record and ability to win, he’s a heck of a lot better than at least half the coaches in the league right now, and probably better than all but a half-dozen or so.

Posted by Nathan from the scoresheet! on 01/08/09 at 10:04 AM ET

Nathan, I concur 100% with you on Tortorella… When I get the opportunity to listen to him on TSN, I think he’d be the perfect fit…. But if/when it turns out ot be Quinn, I’m fine with that too…

JJ, I don’t think anyone would say that ALL is to blame on the coaches, but as you probably know, removing the coaches is the most convenient… In addition, it’s been my contention that the Pens’ success has been IN SPITE of Therrien rather than BECAUSE of him…

Hobo, I think you’re overrating Whitney’s contributions just a tad bit, but overall I hear ya…

Posted by Tony F from Virginia Beach, VA on 01/08/09 at 10:09 AM ET

Nathan, I concur 100% with you on Tortorella… When I get the opportunity to listen to him on TSN, I think he’d be the perfect fit…. But if/when it turns out ot be Quinn, I’m fine with that too…

Right on… Quinn has a great record too and I think he’d be real good. I know Quinn has proven himself at the international level, and the team would respect that, but winning the Cup is a whole different ballgame and Tortorella can say he’s done it.

Either way, big upgrade, IMO. Therrien has proven his worth for a young team multiple times, but has also proven he has a really short shelf-life with any locker room.

Posted by Nathan from the scoresheet! on 01/08/09 at 12:04 PM ET