With the Vancouver Canucks being swept in four games straight by the San Jose Sharks in the first round of this season’s NHL Playoffs, it was obvious that somebody would have to pay for it.As it turns out, it was coach Alain Vigneault who was sent packing rather than general manager Mike Gillis.
The Canucks made the announcement that Vigneault had been fired on Thursday, but no replacement was named. Vigneault leaves the Canucks as the franchise’s most successful head coach.
In addition to firing Vigneault, Vancouver also gave pink slips to assistant caches Rick Bowness and Newell Brown. However, goaltending coach Roland Melanson and assistant coach Darryl Williams were both retained, at least for the time-being.
Gillis told the press that the club had reached the point in time where a change had to be made. He said the team didn’t produce the results that were expected of it and it was as simple as that. Gillis added that it was a hard to decision to make, but one that needed to be done.
The 52-year-old Vigneault had spent the last seven years with the Canucks and posted an impressive record of 313-170-57. He was awarded with the Jack Adams trophy as the NHL’s Coach of the Year for the 2006-07 season, and was a finalist for the trophy in 2011.
Vigneault’s teams won two Presidents' Trophies as the league’s best regular-season club as well as the Northwest Division championship on six occasions. He also led the squad to the Stanley Cup Finals in the 2010-11 season, but lost to the Boston Bruins in seven games at home. Hundreds of Vancouver residents rioted in the city following the defeat.
Things didn’t go too well for the team after the series against the Bruins, though. They were knocked out of playoff action in the early rounds this year and last year, and have lost 10 out of their past 11 postseason contests.
Vigneault released a statement which said he was proud of what the team accomplished while he was in charge and was sorry that the Canucks couldn’t present Vancouver fans with a Stanley Cup. He added that he loves coaching and is looking forward to his next job in the league.
Vigneault won’t have to worry about a paycheck at the moment though since the Canucks signed him to a new three-year deal last summer. Gillis claimed that he was under pressure to fire the former head coach five years ago, but he believed in Vigneault and keeping him proved to be the right decision.
The GM said while the time to fire Vigneault wasn’t right back then, it is now. The firing wasn’t handled too well though, since it was released to the press before the Canucks could inform Vigneault of the move. Gillis said he’s looking for a coach who is upbeat and likes to play an attacking style of hockey, but hasn’t got any possible candidates in mind at the moment.
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