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Three NHL Coaches Who Are On The Hot Seat

By Ken MacMillan

Aug 13, 2020; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Dallas Stars head coach Rick Bowness. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 13, 2020; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Dallas Stars head coach Rick Bowness. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jun 7, 2021; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Montreal Canadiens head coach Dominique Ducharme. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 7, 2021; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Montreal Canadiens head coach Dominique Ducharme. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports /

Dominique Ducharme

The Montreal Canadiens had a magical playoff run under Dominque Ducharme last season. He was a midseason replacement for Claude Julien and though the team couldn’t find its footing under him in the regular season, going 15-16-7 during Ducharme’s tenure, there is no questioning a Stanley Cup Finals run.

However, that 15-16-7 run last season combined with the team’s 5-14-2 start to this season and Ducharme has a regular season record of 20-30-9. That’s not good.

The one thing that might save Ducharm’es job this season is the team is already paying Julien through this year. If they fired Ducharme, they would have to hire a new coach who would be the third person getting paid a head coaches salary by the team for the 2021-22 season. That’s not ideal and though the Canadiens aren’t a budget team by any means, paying three people head coaches salaries at the same time is a bad look.

That might save Ducharme for now. One thing is for certain, the team’s performance is not saving his job. The Canadiens have made a habit of allowing five or more goals on a regular basis and they are one of the lowest scoring teams in the league as well.

Coaches are supposed to have an answer for a team when its special teams struggle, but the Canadiens currently sit 27th on the power play and 29th on the penalty kill. It’s bad, and if not for Julien already cashing cheques from the Canadiens, Ducharme would be gone already. If this awful start lasts much longer, the team will have no choice but to move on from the Ducharme era.

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