Assessing the Tampa Bay Lightning coaching situation amidst firestorm

by Erik Erlendsson | @Erik_Erlendsson | Like us on Facebook
January 9, 2017

TAMPA, Fla..- A firestorm feels as if it’s starting to swirl around the Lightning.

It will continue to burn as long as the losing and defensive deficiencies continue.

And amidst the topic of whether changes need to take place, the biggest hot-button topic centers around the status of head coach Jon Cooper and whether or not his job security is in jeopardy

Is it?

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Let’s just start by saying if there was a move to be made in that department in reaction to the team’s current four-game losing streak, Monday was the day for that to happen. The Lightning do not play until Thursday, so I have little doubt who will be behind the bench when Buffalo visits Amalie Arena.

So let’s get that out of the way, this is not advocating for a change to be made behind the bench, but rather making a case for both sides of the thought process.

First and foremost, Cooper is a winner. Every step along the way, all he’s known is winning. No matter where he’s coached, his teams have been among the best in the league during his tenure. At some point, they have been crowned champion. Whether it was the North American Hockey League (St. Louis Bandits), United States Hockey League (Green Bay Gamblers) or the American Hockey League (Norfolk Admirals), Cooper knows what it takes to lift trophies in victory.

In his first three full seasons behind the Lightning bench, Tampa Bay has qualified for the playoffs, reaching the Stanley Cup Final in his second season, falling in six games to Chicago. Last season, when the Lightning experienced a rough start to the season, Tampa Bay wound up in the Eastern Conference finals.

That is enough built up equity to say that we shouldn’t even be having this conversation. He’s earned the right to work this team through what ails them right now to see what he and his staff can do to point the season back in the right direction.

As bad as the optics are right now – and they are bad – Tampa Bay is far from out of it thanks to the other teams in the Atlantic Division failing to pull away as the Lightning have faltered. So by stringing a few games together, Tampa Bay is right back in the middle of things.

And injuries have been a major factor to the continuity of this year’s lineup. At some point, all of the following have missed time: Steven Stamkos, Ben Bishop, Nikita Kucherov, Jonathan Drouin, Ondrej Palat, Brian Boyle, Ryan Callahan, Valtteri Filppula, Anton Stralman, J.T. Brown, Vladislav Namestnikov, Jason Garrison, Brayden Point and Cedric Paquette.

Now, having said all there, Cooper is in uncharted waters, and not only because he’s not accustomed to seeing teams he’s coached struggle like this, but because of the longevity he’s had with this team.

Cooper’s success always meant he was on the track to the next level. From the NAHL, he took the next step up to the USHL. After two seasons with Green Bay – winning a championship in his second season in 2010 – he was hired by the Lightning to coach the team’s affiliate in the AHL, Norfolk. After making the playoffs his first season, Cooper led the Admirals to a North American pro sport record 28-game winning streak before capturing the Calder Cup in 2012. By the middle of his third season, Cooper was promoted to the NHL after Guy Boucher was fired.

So not since leaving St. Louis for Green Bay has Cooper spent more than two full seasons with the same team. There was always another rung on the ladder that his success allowed him to climb.

Because of how quickly he rose the ranks, what we don’t know is how well the message from the coaching staff is received in a fourth season. At some point, the message always goes stale for a coach, no matter how much success the team has had under him. And with pretty much the same group of players in place for the past three seasons, it’s conceivable to think that the message may no longer be getting through.

I’m not saying it has, just presenting a case for why it might be the case.

But if he has lost the room, it’s unlikely he’ll get it back. And if that’s the case, Steve Yzerman has to make a move.

Todd Richards is already on staff and has plenty of coaching experience in the NHL. With half a season to be around the team and understand the personnel, it would be a natural inclination to make that transition. I can’t imagine the only reason Richards was brought on board this season was to just improve the power play, which he certainly has done. He’s a pretty good insurance policy.

Not to mention you also have associate coach Rick Bowness, with more than 2,000 games of experience behind an NHL bench, also on staff.

I truly believe, if a turnaround doesn’t happen soon, that some sort of change needs to take place. We may already be to that point.

But is a coaching change what’s needed?

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