Farewell To Ron Wilson: Early on Friday morning the news leaked out that the Capitals had handed walking papers to coach Ron Wilson, the only coach in franchise history who had led the team to the Stanley Cup Finals.
While the move might have been a surprise, given the public vote of confidence Wilson and General Manager George McPhee got following the end of a disappointing regular season, neither could it be considered a surprise. When you add the world's best offensive player (Jaromir Jagr), to a team that's won back to back division titles it's natural to expect some improvement in play -- despite any injuries your team might suffer.
Locally, the consensus seems to be that the players simply stopped listening to Wilson, a fact that came out a little more forcefully as McPhee completed a series of exit interviews with players at the end of the season. Some extra perspective on the firing was provided by the Washington Times' Dave Fay, who reported that the first grumbllings about Wilson losing the attention of the team came to light following the Caps second consecutive first round playoff loss to the Penguins in 2001. Apparently, when McPhee heard more of the same after this season, he decided that giving Wilson any more time would have been a grave mistake.
Tony Kornheiser, a man with an amount of ice hockey knowledge that can barely fill a can of coke, actually had some interesting things to say, but predictably it came out of the mouth of ESPN analyst Bill Clement, Kornheiser newest buddy when it comes to the NHL:
"'It's an absolute failure not to make the playoffs with Jagr,' said ESPN's hockey analyst, Bill Clement. 'You can't chalk it up to: 'We're just adjusting to each other.' ' (It should be pointed out Clement was quite critical of Jagr, calling Jagr 'an energy vampire,' and saying, 'Jagr shut down the first half of the season, and threw the franchise into turmoil.')
Which isn't any different from anything anyone who watched the Caps with any regularity this past season could tell on their own. But later, Kornheiser went an assumption too far about what the firing said about owner Ted Leonsis and his relationship with McPhee:
"Where was Leonsis when George McPhee announced Wilson was fired? I heard McPhee say this was all his doing; that he, McPhee, became convinced that Wilson had to go, and pressed that case on Leonsis. I heard McPhee say Leonsis 'was echoing what I said' when Leonsis proclaimed Wilson would be back. McPhee tried to take all the heat himself. But why would anybody trust Leonsis's guarantees after this? Leonsis has been a very good owner; very accessible and enthusiastic; he spends money on players; he markets aggressively and impressively; the Caps have more fans now than ever. But shouldn't Leonsis have been on the podium for a change of this magnitude? Or was this a sign he doesn't fully support his GM?"
I can't draw the same conclusion. At the end of the season, Leonsis made his statement of support for Wilson based on McPhee's input. When McPhee's opinion changed, Leonsis changed his mind -- something that should make any Caps fan feel better about how Leonsis handles the hockey operations side of the club. However, it isn't out of the ordinary to see McPhee have to stand up and justify this decision on his own. Sure, Leonsis supports McPhee decision, but by not showing up Leonsis is telling McPhee that he is on the hot seat now, and will be held accountable for the success or failure of the next coaching hire.
Now the question turns to who to hire. Some think Portland Pirates coach Glen Hanlon is the man for McPhee; others say Hall of Famer Bryan Trottier, now with the Colorado Avalanche as an assistant, is the man who can lead the Caps to the promised land; maybe even Barry Melrose, who has spent better than half a decade behind a mic at ESPN might be the trick.
What should be abundantly clear is that Leonsis is above all else a businessman. He's a marketer who knows entertainment, and the value of star power and buzz. After acquiring Jagr last Summer, the Caps had all the buzz they needed to help fill the seats at MCI Center. Now, coming off a non-playoff year, all that buzz and excitement is a dim memory. Plenty of season ticket holders who were drawn in with the prospect of seeing Jagr score in bunches won't be renewing their seats for next year, and the Caps are going to be desperate to find some sort of device to give fans hope for next season and put some fannies back in the seats.
Without any new personnel, or a change in the coaching staff, the Caps wouldn't have had a leg to stand on when it came to getting folks to renew their tickets. And with the Caps ccoming off a season where they lost $25 million, it should be clear that Leonsis, while he might be able to sustain continued losses, probably would prefer not to have to. With a new coach coming to town, the Caps ticket office will have a horse to ride on. While I don't doubt that McPhee will go wih the best hockey decision available, don't think that Leonsis won't have a say. For my money, I'd bet on either Melrose or Trottier behind the bench next season.
UPDATE: SI's Kostaya Kennedy has a few more potential candidates: Kings Asst. Coach Dave Tipppet; former Buffalo Coach Ted Nolan; ex-Devils skipper Larry Robinson.
