Photo courtesy The Hockey Writers
Most recent reports coming out of South Florida have Nashville Predators assistant coach Phil Housley moving to the top of the Florida Panther coaching candidate list – with DU’s Jim Montgomery in a solid secondary position. General Manager Dale Tallon will not be able to interview Housley until the end of the Preds’ Stanley Cup Final run against the Pittsburgh Penguins. So expect the already long, drawn out process to continue for several more weeks.
As reported by the Hockey Feed, “according to one Panthers insider, they’ve zeroed in on a Hall of Famer – Phil Housley.” And, this delay also helps to account for such an extended coaching search by Tallon who can only meet with Housley after the playoffs conclude.
The Panthers are still waiting for the Stanley Cup Finals to end so they can interview Predators assistant coach Phil Housley.#flapanthers
— Harvey F. (@hfialkov) May 25, 2017
One of the best American defensemen ever, Housley is fourth all-time in NHL scoring for defensemen and could pass on his expertise to the team’s young core of defenders like Aaron Ekblad and Michael Matheson. Housley retired from the NHL in 2003 and since then has remained involved with the game. He is a member of the NHL Hall of Fame and, in 2013, he coached the IIHF World U20 Championship to the Gold. He later joined the Nashville Predators as an assistant to head coach Peter Laviolette.
Housley has worked with Dale Tallon in the past and the two are said to be close. Housley has also benefited from a great run by the Nashville Predators who play ferocious defense. The Predators’ biggest strength is their versatile and deep defensive corps, which features P.K. Subban, Roman Josi, Ryan Ellis, and Mattias Ekholm in the top four. A major reason for that group’s success, though, is Housley who works primarily with the Nashville’s defense.
In his first season with Nashville after being traded by the Montreal Canadiens, star blueliner P.K. Subban had only good things to say of Housley, “He sees the game unlike probably anyone else who’s ever played the game. When he talks, all that matters is what is coming out of his mouth.”
In Monday’s game-one loss to Pittsburgh, the Predator defense, nicknamed Smashville for their aggressive style, allowed no shots on goal in the second period and only 12 for the game – a Stanley Cup record for a losing team. Performances like these are catching the eyes of South Florida.
Denver hockey fans shouldn’t rest easy yet. This process isn’t over.
There may be other interest in Housley as well. The Buffalo Sabres also have an open head coaching slot likely have Housley on their radar, too. Housley spent his first eight NHL seasons in Buffalo so there may also be a loyalty factor at play. The Panthers are said to be thrifty with head coaching salaries (i.e. cheap) so Jim Montgomery could move to the top of the Panther’s list if their bid for Housley is unsuccessful.
The Panthers’ interview process, while longer than most, shows just how difficult it is for a college coach to break into the NHL ranks with all the qualified competition. That’s why Jim Montgomery is obliged to take this opportunity to potentially achieve the highest level possible in his field.
If he doesn’t go now, though, there will surely be more opportunities down the road.
Jim should tell Florida, thanks but no thanks. Coming in as the backup default option is just fundamentally flawed. Any early problems like starting out with mostly loses politically goes right to the new “second choice” coach’s fault. Why let someone string you out. If you are not enthusiastic about hiring me I don’t want the job should be Jim’s position..
Jim should tell Florida, thanks but no thanks. Coming in as the backup default option is just fundamentally flawed. Any early problems like starting out with mostly loses politically goes right to the new “second choice” coach’s fault. Why let someone string you out. If you are not enthusiastic about hiring me I don’t want the job should be Jim’s position..
I didn’t know where to post this, but its coaching related:
Peter Mannino has been hired as an assistant coach at Omaha
he’s a great guy, lets hope he has a great coaching career !
(he’s also a big Boone supporter !)
We’ve been tweeting about his hire at UNO. Thank god he didn’t go to CC – they have an opening.
sorry, I should follow your tweets more ( I did during lax game)
Regardless, happy for Peter !
Congrats to Peter, a great guy and a wonderful DU alumnus. He will make a great head coach someday, and he just needs more seasoning at a higher level of hockey. Omaha is a great starting point, because the head coach there is new, and they have an opportunity to create some chemistry together on a clean slate, and Peter won’t compete against the legacies of past assistant coaches in the mind of his boss.
As for Monty, I don’t think you would ever take your name out of contention for an NHL head coaching job, because you don’t know where you really stand until you get an offer, a rejection or someone else gets the job. Those jobs are now paying $2 about million a year, there are only 30 of them, and if he does get an offer, then he decides if he wants to take it or not.
If he were to withdraw his name, he may score a few points with DU fans, but that might not sit well with other NHL teams, who may see him as a something of prima donna, which could affect future offers.
If he doesn’t get an NHL offer, no harm/no foul – he was a serious candidate who can simply wait for his next offer. He’s under contract to DU and he’ll simply go about his business. DU understands that the NHL is the NHL, and they will likely let him go through the courtship dance without penalty, so long as it concludes over the summer…
I didn’t know where to post this, but its coaching related:
Peter Mannino has been hired as an assistant coach at Omaha
he’s a great guy, lets hope he has a great coaching career !
(he’s also a big Boone supporter !)
We’ve been tweeting about his hire at UNO. Thank god he didn’t go to CC – they have an opening.
sorry, I should follow your tweets more ( I did during lax game)
Regardless, happy for Peter !
Congrats to Peter, a great guy and a wonderful DU alumnus. He will make a great head coach someday, and he just needs more seasoning at a higher level of hockey. Omaha is a great starting point, because the head coach there is new, and they have an opportunity to create some chemistry together on a clean slate, and Peter won’t compete against the legacies of past assistant coaches in the mind of his boss.
As for Monty, I don’t think you would ever take your name out of contention for an NHL head coaching job, because you don’t know where you really stand until you get an offer, a rejection or someone else gets the job. Those jobs are now paying $2 about million a year, there are only 30 of them, and if he does get an offer, then he decides if he wants to take it or not.
If he were to withdraw his name, he may score a few points with DU fans, but that might not sit well with other NHL teams, who may see him as a something of prima donna, which could affect future offers.
If he doesn’t get an NHL offer, no harm/no foul – he was a serious candidate who can simply wait for his next offer. He’s under contract to DU and he’ll simply go about his business. DU understands that the NHL is the NHL, and they will likely let him go through the courtship dance without penalty, so long as it concludes over the summer…