Isles jerking Nolan around, but WHY he asks?
March 27th, 2008 by jcapisles
No coach likes to go into his final year of a contract as a lame duck. He also doesn’t like to be thrown under the bus for failures that are not his fault. Lord knows Ted Nolan has earned a big extension at top dollars. I don’t care that the team fell short of the playoffs this year. He had zilch to work with and anyone in NHL circles you ask will tell you the same thing.
The problem the front office has with him appears to be over a roll-of-the-dice move a few weeks back when he started Wade Dubielewicz in both ends of a home-and-home with the Rangers. Rick DiPietro, he of his quickly developing “Tin Man” alter ego, was on the mend from the injury which eventually sidelined him for the season, but was deemed healthy enough to play. Nolan chose to go with the hot hand. Dubie had beaten the Rangers in the first game.
OK, so the Isles lose the second game 3-1. Of course it’s Nolan’s fault because Dubie didn’t score three goals.
WHATEVER.
Nolan is the best coach this franchise has had since Al Arbour retired the first time. Give the guy a break. Garth Snow and Charles Wang let everyone walk this past offseason, some justifiably so. But if there’s a finger to be pointed at someone for the team’s failures this season it should be directed at those two because the guys they signed — all fairness to Bill Guerin … a true warrior — were a downgrade from what they had. Say what you want about guys like Viktor Kozlov and Tom Poti, even Alexei Yashin on some levels. I’m not saying they should have kept Yashin. No chance, but at least TRY to get something better. Those three may not have been the greatest players for the Isles, but they sure were better than any combination you want to put together of Josef Vasicek, Ruslan Fedotenko and Sean Bergenheim, to name a few.
No, Isles management was high on something to think a team composed of career third-line players (minus Guerin and Mike Comrie. They are good, but better as supporting parts) could make the playoffs.
Snow tried to sign Ryan Smyth. He threw a ton of cash at him, but Smyth went to Colorado. That accidental non-move was the best move Snow made the entire offseason because “Cryin’ Ryan” has been a bust in Colorado. But the bottom line is once Snow backed up the truck after the 2006-07 season he didn’t come close to restocking with anything resembling an NHL-caliber offense. He didn’t rebound from losing his “all in” hand with Smyth.
None of this is Nolan’s fault and neither is the team’s struggles this season. In fact, a case can be made that he went above and beyond the call of duty with the rejects he did have. Add in the fact that 12 guys from the original 25-man roster are currently out with injuries, including their top four defensemen and franchise goalie, and the last thing anyone should say is Nolan failed this team or the Long Island community.
Nolan deserves a three- or four-year extension at middle-of-the-road NHL coach compensation at worst.
And as for you Mr. Snow, I stood up for you huge last offseason when everyone was making those “backup goalie-turned-GM” jokes. I may turn around and lead the verbal assault calling for your ouster if you don’t give Nolan an extension and find him and the fans some guys who can actually score, forget 40 goals, try, say, 20 goals.
The idea that the New York press is even hinting that Nolan could be gone is a crime. And I blame you for it.
Cut the crap and get with it. Give Nolan a vote of confidence, a new deal and move toward free agency with everything in order. Nolan will win a Cup as a coach before he leaves this earth.
It better be behind the Islanders’ bench.
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