Uh Oh

The Lightning seem to be in bad hands again. Putting Barry Melrose behind the bench might not be the complete bonehead move it appears to be but there where so many other worthwhile candidates. Stay tuned for the continuing story of a franchise that has gone to the dogs.

Just make it no-touch, damn it

The NHL has tweaked its rule on-icing and has refrained from going with a no touch icing rule. Instead it has declared: "Any contact between opposing players while pursuing the puck on an icing must be for the sole purpose of playing the puck and not for eliminating the opponent from playing the puck. Unnecessary or dangerous contact could result in penalties being assessed to the offending player."

This rule still allows for interpretation of what unnecessary or dangerous contact is. All this really does is give referees a bit more encouragement to call a penalty in an icing situation. This may only put a minor dent in the risk to injury on this play.

The NHL will continue to move at a glacial pace on this and it will prove not to be an appropriate measure. Given the frequency with which the debate heats up we will likely see this rule around for a good 10 years before they finally go to no-touch.

Changing of the coaching guard?

With the Kings' firing of Marc Crawford coinciding with the hiring of Ron Wilson in Toronto, the openings on the NHL coaching carousel remains steady. Atlanta, Florida, Tampa, Ottawa, and San Jose continue searching for new behind the bench talent and rather than the same-old same-old, newer names are cropping up and are getting serious consideration. Red Wings' assistant Todd McLellan is getting interviews and appears to be the Sharks' first choice, Ottawa is closing in on Peter Deboer it seems and the Kings are rumoured to be giving the reins to assistant coach Mike Johnston. John Anderson's Calder Cup win with the Chicago Wolves ought to give him a bit more consideration in Atlanta or free up his schedule for interviews for other positions. Kevin Dineen, Randy Cunneyworth and Craig Hartsburgh are also candidates that deserve a bit more consideration.

The likes of John Tortorella and Marc Crawford may not find a coaching spot for the 2008-09 season. Their styles have not been that endearing and their most recent performance has not been that impressive. The infusion of fresh coaching talent might be a key step in the evolution of the "new NHL." Joel Quenneville ought to get land a bench sometime before the fall but the other recent fired coaches will likely remain in the rumour mills until well into next season when people start to call for shake-ups to slow-starting teams.

All told, with the changes that are taking place, the Leafs' hiring of Ron Wilson may end up assessed in the same manner as a squandered first round draft pick. His hiring does not indicate fresh thinking for the franchise and his bristling with the Toronto media and his sarcastic sniping at his players will stir a lot of bad blood in the locker room. Hopefully he will watch some video of Paul Maurice's dealings with the TO scribes.