Coaching Carousel claims another victim: Boudreau replaces Carlyle in Anaheim

The coaching carousel continued late last night when following a 4-1 win over the Canadiens, the Ducks fired Randy Carlyle and his entire staff. Taking over is Bruce Boudreau, who lasted a couple of days on the market after being relieved of his duties in Washington.

That Anaheim GM Bob Murray would make such a move 40 minutes after a game his team won stupifies. When the Habs made former Ranger assistant Perry Pearn the sacrificial lamb prior to a home game, that was disgraceful. But axing an entire staff that included a Cup winning coach following a game is classless. It's like when the Mets were on the West coast a few years back and fired Willie Randolph in a San Diego hotel after a game. I don't think I have to tell you what our resident Devil blogger, who also happens to be a huge Mets fan thinks. This was just as bizarre.

It's certainly understandable why Carlyle lost his job with a playoff team off to a dreadful start. Yesterday's win snapped a seven-game losing streak in which they entered with only one brownie point, sitting 14th in a deep West. They also happen to play in the league's most challenging division, the Pacific where every other team is ahead of them. It didn't matter that they won for just the third time in their last 15. The most successful coach in Ducks franchise history couldn't be saved.

It was only a few years ago that a group including Ryan Getzlaf, last year's MVP Corey Perry and Teemu Selanne went all the way for the team's first Stanley Cup. But that championship roster also included Jean-Sebastien Giguere, Scott Niedermayer, Chris Pronger along with Andy McDonald, Chris Kunitz, Dustin Penner, Joffrey Lupul, Sami Pahlsson, Travis Moen, and Rob Niedermayer. Only five are left from that team with tough guy George Parros and reacquired blueliner Francois Beauchemin the other two. In a Cap Era, this is what happens to great teams. Salaries increase for core players such as Getzlaf, Perry, much rumored Jersey native Bobby Ryan and struggling goalie Jonas Hiller. The overlooked spare parts get sacrificed or stripped down completely as the '09-10 Blackhawks show. All it takes is a mishap to throw things out of wack.

Is a team that boasts one of the most lethal lines in the game still good enough to compete? They should be. But the numbers don't lie with Perry and Getzlaf unable to match last year's output, while Ryan hasn't got untracked. In fact, only ageless Teemu has fulfilled expectations, pacing the club with 22 points (8-14-22). Perry leads them with 11 goals with Getzlaf's 14 assists tied with Selanne and 19 points ranking third. After second-year blueliner Cam Fowler, Beauchemin and vet Saku Koivu, it gets paper thin. Injuries to Lubomir Visnovsky, Jason Blake and Parros haven't helped the cause- further explaining the 7-13-4 start that has Anaheim in an early hole. The bottom six forwards aren't good enough and the back end misses Visnovsky, who put up nearly 70 points last year. After a solid start, Hiller has fallen apart getting pulled five times recently with his GAA ballooning to over 3.00. Dan Ellis isn't the answer despite good numbers. Tampa can vouch.

Is making Ryan available really the answer? He is all of 24 with three consecutive 30-goal seasons in which his production increased by seven points each year ('08-09-57, '09-10-64, '10-11-71). He has a cap hit of 5.1 million through '14-15 while Perry and Getzlaf can turn unrestricted following next season. You see the dilemma Murray has. Those are the franchise cornerstones who they can't afford to lose. So, Ryan is supposedly available for the right price. Is a team like the Rangers willing to pay up in players, prospects/picks? I've already suggested starting with enigma Brandon Dubinsky and Mike Del Zotto. Though I'm unwilling to part with Chris Kreider. They can have any other kid. Christian Thomas? Figure Anaheim to ask for a No.1 pick too. Of course, making such a blockbuster trade has risks when your team is going as well as ours. But the temptation to add another young, proven finisher is like seeing one of those Victoria's Secret models on the street. You just got to go over and talk to them.

If I were Anaheim, I'd hold off on giving up Ryan with Coach Haagen Dazs Bruce in the fold. One thing about Boudreau. He is an offensive mind who turned the Caps into a juggernaut before making players, including underwhelming captain Alex Ovechkin accountable. No wonder it fell apart. Boudreau will have just as much talent up front along with the young Fowler on the blueline. They may as well see what he can do before considering such a radical move.

It's December 1 and we've already seen four coaches given their walking papers. Davis Payne was fired by St. Louis last month and the Blues have responded under disciplinarian Ken Hitchcock by losing just once in regulation since. They were my sleeper entering the year. Business sure picked up after Thanksgiving with Paul Maurice and Boudreau sent packing Monday. Then two days later, Carlyle becomes victim No.4 with Boudreau landing on his feet. Guess he'll have to hold off on that Haagen Dazs franchise. It's part of the business. No matter how successful you are, things can change in a hurry. Ask Tom Coughlin, who probably is gone unless the Giants somehow beat Dallas twice. Nobody is untouchable. The Devils are one of the best run organizations and have gone through a plethora of coaches.

Randy Carlyle finishes with a 273-182-6 record- ranking first in Ducks history in wins. His teams made the postseason five of six years, including their run to the franchise's only Cup. That shouldn't be forgotten. A quality coach who will wind up elsewhere. Scott Arniel and Jack Capuano still have jobs. Either could be his next destination.

With the coaching carousel hitting victims at a frenetic pace that would make Freddy Krueger proud, who will be the next casualty? We're not even at Christmas.

Christy, Gaborik solve Hiller in shootout win

Nobody comes under more scrutiny than Erik Christensen. Not even the much debated Sean Avery, who will make his season debut tomorrow versus the Canadiens with Wojtek Wolski on the shelf.

Christy is an interesting character, who gives you a lot of perspective into the person he is on and off the ice. When the inconsistent center isn't there driving myself and many fans nuts, it's hard to make a case for retaining him. Just when you think you know someone, we got a very different look into a young man who's contributed to two consecutive home wins over San Jose and Anaheim. Against the Sharks, he made two nifty passes to set up big goals and versus the Ducks, there he was again solving Jonas Hiller along with Marian Gaborik in the Rangers' 2-1 shootout victory at MSG Thursday.

“I’m happy I got a chance to go. My record isn’t that good,” the Great Gabby said after converting only his third in 20 career attempts. “I had my move before I went. I tried to fake a move before I shot and it worked out well. Before I went to shoot, I tried to make up my mind, and I looked at him, and he was kind of challenging me a bit.”

While it's easy to point to the Great Gabby's (yes, he's back) wizardry in Round Three that ultimately decided it with Henrik Lundqvist snuffing out Bobby Ryan in last licks, Christensen kept a cool head leading off in the first to score the team's first shootout goal of the season. After being blank in two prior attempts, he went back to his Swedish roots by emulating Peter Forsberg with the ever exciting one-handed deke which snuck through Hiller. Perhaps that was enough to finally break the brick wall the much overlooked Anaheim goalie put up following unsung hero Jeff Woywitka's first as a Ranger. It's not often but the goaltending from Hiller was off the charts. Fantastic. Super. Sensational. Yes. Lundqvist wound up with three more stops (27 to Hiller's 24) but that was due to a strong Duck third where they used their speed and tempo to make life difficult. Outside of maybe one he'd like back on a ripper of a shot from Ryan that knotted it late in the second, King Henrik was stellar- standing up to the challenge in a busy third that saw Anaheim outshoot New York 15-4.

In particular, Cam Fowler was everywhere. Some still like to compare the rebirth of Mike Del Zotto, who ironically sports the identical No.4 as the second-year Duck. However, John Tortorella doesn't trust MDZ enough to put him out in the final minute of tie games. He can lean on emerging star Ryan McDonagh and warrior Dan Girardi while Marc Staal recovers from PCS. Randy Carlyle doesn't have that luxury. Even with Lubomir Visnovsky, Toni Lydman and Francois Beauchemin, he opted to give Fowler the opportunity to go for it in crunch time. The man who skates like Scott Niedermayer didn't disappoint, creating dangerous chances by jumping in and shooting the puck. If there's one bugaboo with Del Zotto, it's that he still is hesitant to fire away- instead opting to defer to either Gaborik or Brad Richards. Not that there's anything wrong with it as one odd pass to Gabby nearly ended it in overtime.

Speaking of the fancy four-on-four, it was terrific. Both teams went for it but the Blueshirts had like five different chances to win it only to see Hiller get in the path or alter shots high and wide. Our team made the extra passes and cut it too fine. All credit to the elite goalie, who has recovered nicely from vertigo. His play didn't go unnoticed.

“Hiller is good,” Lundqvist praised of his Swiss counterpart who displayed a cat-like glove that even denied unlikely first period candidate Steve Eminger, who could only chuckle during a stoppage. “He’s a good one-on-one goalie. He’s quick side-to-side.”

"He made some real big stops,” Carlyle added. “I think the first period, he kept us alive and we only gave up the one goal.”

Hiller's act was good enough to earn 2nd Star even though in our book, he was No.1. They gave it to Gaborik. A fine choice. He once again dominated throughout. It doesn't seem to matter who he plays with. Though when our team failed on a couple of power plays and couldn't find a second goal, I was begging Tort to doubleshift him with Richards to try for another. Instead, Ryan came flying down the right side and used McDonagh's backing in to blast one past Lundqvist. Sometimes, the coach must do what it takes to get offense. What's wrong with giving Artem Anisimov a shift with former Draftmates Brandon Dubinsky and Ryan Callahan? He's been outplayed by Derek Stepan but isn't being put in a position to succeed. These are areas the coach can do better.

Early on, a wonderful diagonal Gaborik pass found Woywitka, who shot through a D-Step screen for his first. Pretty awesome. News had spread that the club had reached agreement with D Anton Stralman (rumored to be 1 year, $900,000). So, who knows how long Woywitka will stick around. I'm rooting for him to stay as he's been a pleasant surprise. Nice move giving Woywitka the Broadway hat. A very cool moment.

“We had some good zone pressure and Gabs is coming around the net there, he made a great play and I stayed a little wider, a little higher and he got the pass through to me," the steady waiver pickup said. "I wanted to get it off as quick as I could, as hard as I could and got it past the first set of legs, and once you do that anything can happen. It was exciting.”

In the skill competition, ageless wonder Teemu Selanne tied it with a backhand deke top shelf. I swear the Finnish Flash could play till 50 if he so desired. The skating, hands and ferocity are still there. He'll always be one of our faves. During MSG's coverage, they flashed back to that amazing rookie season of '92-93 when he shattered Paul Stastny's records with 76 goals and 132 points the same year Eric Lindros came in. Teemu has 642 career goals, ranking second to Jaromir Jagr (646) among active players. Both should pass Brendan Shanahan (656) for 11th all-time with Luc Robitaille (668) within reach.



After Richards was denied by Hiller, Lundqvist got a piece of Corey Perry's high labeler, setting the stage for Gaborik. Instead of doing something ordinary, he danced and faked shot twice before going to the backhand for a spectacular goal. All that was left was for Lundqvist to exact revenge on Ryan, who got the better of him in oddly enough, a 2-1 Anaheim shootout win in Stockholm. King Henrik got a shoulder on it and pumped his fists.

“He’s been our best player this year," a pleased Tortorella explained of Gaborik. "Two for 19, but he’s ready to take the next step. I’m glad for him. I hope it helps him. Because he’s been our most consistent player offensively and I’m glad for him it worked out.”



BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Cam Fowler, Ana (27:03, 2 SOG, +1, dangerous)
2nd Star-Marian Gaborik, NYR (assist, shootout decider, game high 7 SOG)
1st Star-Jonas Hiller, Ana (24 saves incl. some highlight reel)

Finding A Schedule

The season is almost a week in and it's off to the usual unbalanced start. Such is the case when select teams have played three and four times already while others twice and even a few only once. This is the madness that is the NHL. Where it's impossible to find a schedule that brings sanity to a brand new season. With the league expanding to Europe with four teams starting overseas on Opening Weekend (Buf, NYR, Ana, LA), it leaves those fans clamoring for more as well as players and coaches who must adjust to the travel without much practice time.

For the new look Terry Pegula Sabres, the 2-0 start is exactly the recipe. It's already been a big autumn for Western New York with the reemergence of the Bills, who bring an AFC best 4-1 mark into Met Life Stadium against the Giants this weekend. Suddenly, Buffalo is the place to be with things looking up for a town that hasn't had much to go ga ga over. While it's hard to predict if the football team will continue its run, Lindy Ruff's club should definitely be in the mix for '11-12. Especially if new acquisitions Ville Leino, Christian Ehrhoff and Robyn Regehr continue to jell with a strong core that still features Ryan Miller, Thomas Vanek, Derek Roy, Drew Stafford, Tyler Myers, Paul Gaustad and new captain Jason Pominville. Toss in promising kids Tyler Ennis, Nathan Gerbe and Luke Adam and there's plenty of ammunition. Since sweeping a weekend series from Anaheim and LA, the Sabres have been off before their home opener Friday versus Carolina. Then, they hit the Steel City Saturday against the sizzling Pens (3-0-1).

This is what you're dealing with. Will the travel combined with the layoff have any adverse affect? That's something the Rangers are wondering as well with no game till Saturday in Nassau when they meet blood rival Islanders before embarking on a four-game Western Canadian swing that includes stops at Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton with a close out at Winnipeg. Unlike the other three European participants, the Blueshirts don't return home until October 27th against Original Six Toronto due to Part I of the MSG Renovation. So, if they get off to a bad start, there'll be plenty of blame to go around. And guess what. Same thing next year and 2013. By the time the new Garden's completed, everyone will be sick of Europe.

Meanwhile, the Kings return to action tomorrow when they visit the Devils and Saturday the Flyers before returning home for St. Louis next Monday. Hardly fun. Think of all the travel just to return to Hollywood for practice and now they must head East for two and then all the way back out West with only two days off. Who drew that up? We're not touching that one.

At least Anaheim gets to stay home when they hit the ice Friday to host California rival San Jose. But they still must play three in four with St. Louis visiting Saurday before they finish an odd in between home-and-home with San Jose at HP Pavilion. They're not leaving California, which is probably the best a Duck fan could ask.

If only it were that simple for the Rangers. That's what happens when your arena turns into a big construction site nobody recognizes. I even had a dream about the new place. It was kinda bizarre. I was in the State Of The Art Garden that included upper echelon food chains (as advertised) and waited on a line for a cheeseburger and fries that ran 25 bucks without a drink. Uh. Seriously. I am not making this up. Then, when I tried to find our seats, it was literally a circus to get there. Don't ask. I still cannot figure out why I dreamt it. It's been over two weeks and I half wonder if this is how it really will be. Duck and cover?!?!?!?!?!

This is what happens when your mind is occupied. The good news is it's a little crisper today here in the metropolitan area, which means classic Fall weather. Unfortunately, I have to work. At least we can feel comfortable minus the humidity. Halloween's around the corner. By then, we'll be able to locate a schedule. But will you be able to discover who I'll be? Trick or treat.