The Winnipeg Jets
have fired head coach Claude Noel and replaced him with ex-Carolina Hurricanes and Toronto Maple Leafs bench boss
Paul Maurice.
After losing five straight games, the most recent 6-3 to the Columbus Blue Jackets, the Jets are now 10 points out of the second wild card spot for the NHL playoffs with a record of 19-23-5. They sit dead last in the Central division.
Noel is a player's coach and apparently could not whip his players into the right state of mind or to get them to buy into his system, which resulted in a three-season record (taking into account of the 2012-2013 shortened season) of 80-79-18.
Personally I liked Noel. His media scrums and press conferences were always entertaining. His story of his time with the old Johnstown Jets about a brawl that inspired the famous scene from
Slap Shot is a classic. But professional hockey is a business and the only thing that matters is wins and losses. Noel himself would be the first to say that.
Let's hope he lands on his feet somewhere soon. I'm sure he will.
