Capitals Fire Coach Bruce Cassidy.
Or, as the press release from the team puts it, Capitals Name Glen Hanlon Head Coach.
I'm wondering if the final straw was Cassidy's tirade after last week's disgraceful loss to New Jersey. (Nine shots. The Caps managed only nine shots the whole freakin' game. In case you were wondering why I've not been blogging about hockey, for once I've been following the advice of my mom [and Thumper's]: if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all.)
Cassidy reportedly "brought up his players' families, saying that he did not care if the players had pregnant wives or sick children on their minds and that such issues were no excuse for the way they were playing."
Now, that's a pretty low blow. On the other hand, I had a boss once tell me to pull my head out of my ass and give the company the eight hours a day for which they were paying me. She put it a lot nicer than that, and I respected her, and I responded.
Cassidy had already lost control, already lost their respect, and so the players weren't going to respond with "Gee, you're right, coach, maybe we aren't giving 100%."
I've also know a few mercurial, tyrannical people in the workplace. They aren't a pleasure to work with, but in some circumstances (some being the key word) they can get results. (Mike Keenan?) One thing about those leaders, though...they don't come back the next day and apologize for hurting your feelings.
Maybe Cassidy can drop back a few leagues and get a better handle on what kind of coach he is.
That said...we're still not exactly a Stanley Cup contender. But I am looking forward to the next couple of weeks to see what kind of changes Hanlon makes.
Posted by Nic at December 10, 2003 06:49 PM | TrackBack