Back where he belongs
It's nice to see Ted Nolan, the head coach of the New York Islanders, back behind a bench.The former Jack Adams Award (best coach) winner, who fell out of favor after walking away from a contract offer from the Buffalo Sabres and turning down a head-coaching opportunity in Tampa Bay, brings more than diversity (he was born into the Garden River Ojibwa First Nation tribe in Canada) to the NHL.
Through his actions, he has shown that good things happen to people who stand up for their beliefs. To me, it's no wonder that he has the Islanders within two points of making the playoffs with 11 games to go.
Labels: autographs, Buffalo Sabres, New York Islanders, pucks, role models, Ted Nolan
posted by Puckhound at 12:12 PM
1 Comments:
Falling out of favor is putting it nicely. As much of a fan of the Sabres as I am (and I am), the shafting Nolan got in Buffalo bordered on criminal. As for ten years away from the bench, that is a classic case of being pidgeon-holed. Once the stigma of being a "GM killer" was attached to his name, I am almost surprised that he did get a job in the NHL this soon. Luckily, it took a novice GM (Snow) and a wacked out owner (Wang) to do the right thing and put him back where he belongs. While I love the job Lindy Ruff has done with Buffalo, Ted Nolan should never have had to leave and the contract "offer" Darcy Regier proposed to Nolan was a joke to begin with, knowing full well that a man as prideful as Ted Nolan was in no way in hell going to accept it. But hopefully someday after the Sabres finally win their first Stanley Cup, Ted will have the opportunity to sip from that same cup and taste that sweet nectar of redemption. He deserves that much.
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