The first coaching casualty of the 2008-2009 season has come, and we’re not even a month into the season.
Apparently a 1-2-1 record is unacceptable to the Blackhawks management, because Denis Savard is now unemployed. Joel Quenneville, the former coach of the Blues and most recently the Avalanche, has been named as his replacement. The concerns in Chicago are similar to those Quenneville faced during his tenure in Colorado. He’s got big expectations of performance from new free agents, goaltenders fighting for the starting job, and plenty of young talent to mix into the roster. If the Avs weren’t impressed, what does Chicago see in Coach Q?
Joel brings us a wealth of experience and a winning track record that will have an immediate and lasting impact. – Blackhawks General Manager Dale Tallon
While Quenneville has enjoyed a .592 winning percentage in his career, and Savard is at .497 in his career, he’s only coached ONE full season. Savard seems to be the victim of an impatient management in Chicago, and his firing came much too soon.
This is what Dale Tallon had to say when Savard was hired:
“The bottom line is wins and losses and we needed to win more. We’ve had some injuries, but in spite of that we’re a better team than our record shows. We’ve won three of our last 15 games and we decided to go in a different direction. We want to play a more up-tempo style game.”
Tallon must have been impressed with Savard’s ability to turn the team around and get those wins, because just three games into his tenure, the team extended his contract through 07-08. So why fire him so quickly? Granted, the team didn’t make the playoffs last season, but they had a winning season and made 3rd place in the Central Division.
For a rebuilding club, that’s not a record that merits firing a coach. The only thing this move will accomplish is a big step backwards in the development of this team. Patience, Dale! These things take time.