Who Should The Florida Panthers Target As Their Next Coach?

As we all are counting down the days till Tom Rowe heads back to office, we often think, who should the Florida Panthers target as their next coach?

I’ve made a list of three candidates who are possibilities for the Florida Panthers coaching position. Seeing that Claude Julien was picked up quickly by the Montreal Canadiens, this has really narrowed down the options for the Cats.

Ken Hitchcock: Ken was with the St. Louis Blues for seven seasons as their head coach. Ken did a fairly respectable job for the Blues, as they were contenders in the last few years. With players like Backes, Oshie, and Shattenkirk all leaving the Blues, this really made Ken’s job more difficult in finding immediate success.

As players left through trades and free agency, so did winning results. With the Blues dropping from a playoff spot to a non playoff spot, this officially signaled the end of Ken’s time in St. Louis.

Michel Therrien: Michel had two spells with the Montreal Canadiens. One in 2001 for about a year and the other one being in 2012 for five years. Similar to Ken, Michel was fired as Montreal were slowly slipping away in the standings. As Montreal wanted to keep their position of first in the Atlantic division, the Canadiens quickly snatched Claude Julien up, in hope for re-assurance.

Michel can easily serve for any half decent team in the NHL. As long as the team has a solid core of players, there is no reason why Michel can’t coach again in the NHL.

Lindy Ruff: I know what a lot of you are going to say. “Danny, he hasn’t been fired yet, there is no guarantee”. Well that’s where you’re wrong!. As we all know, Dallas have been a nightmare this year, especially defensively. Their is almost a 95% chance that Lindy Ruff will be relieved of his duties after the season.

With core players like Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn, you’d definitely expect a much better outcome from this team. Expect the Stars management to find a replacement for Lindy Ruff, as they look to push for the post season next year.

Next: Florida Panthers 2017 NHL Playoff Chances

Coaching Candidate Preference?

So out of these three, who would I choose to target first as our head coach? Well first and foremost, I would personally choose Ken Hitchcock as our next head coach. Ken would bring in new ideas and a fresh system for the players to learn. As our defense has struggled to really click all year long, a new system for them to start fresh with wouldn’t be a bad idea.

The idea of jump starting our offense would also be a key area to address. Offense has definitely struggled this year and as of late also. With a new system for the forwards to play, this can possibly increase their production on both even strength and power play. Improving in our special teams department is a must, as teams who struggle in the special teams department don’t usually go far.