Who Are the Candidates St. Louis is Potentially Looking At To Fill Their Head Coaching Position?
Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet was on Sirius XM NHL Network Radio Morning Skate on Wednesday morning with Scott Laughlin and Gord Stellick and when asked about the St. Louis Blues and what they might do at the coaching position, he came up with some intriguing names.
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** NHLRumors.com Transcription
Gord Stellick: “Who do you think Doug Armstrong wants to talk about given he only gave the interim tag to the coach right now? What one or two targets? Do you think you might think he is going to be able to get during the season?”
Elliotte Friedman: “Well, I think you can get anyone who has been fired. There’s there’s no question about that. Like, one of the things that happens here, first of all, nobody really stands in the way of anyone. If a team asks for permission we’re gonna say yeah. So don’t forget Gordie, a lot of these teams are paying guys. So you get into a situation where you’d love for them to be hired by someone else so that you don’t, you don’t have to pay them anymore.
I think I wouldn’t be surprised if he talks to Evason. I wouldn’t be surprised if he talks to Woodcroft. Like he knows Ken Holland really well. They’re very tight. So he would get all the Intel he would need on him. Doug Armstrong is a really old-school guy. But I think a lot of the like, the really old school guys, I don’t know how many of them are really possible here.
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For example, Joel Quenneville who used to coach Blues, I checked last Wednesday, he’s still not cleared by the NHL. So I’ve been looking at it guys like Evason, I’ve been looking at guys like Woodcroft but I’m always wondering about like who’s the new group?
Like who are the next level of coaches that some of them want to talk to. Those guys, if they’re employed are harder to figure out if you get permission during the year. Like one guy is Ottawa wants to talk to absolutely because they know is Jon Gruden coaches who the Marlies. And teams are really strange, some of them about hiring in season.
Now one team that did allow was the Rangers with Edmonton. Knoblauch was not going to be the coach in New York, so they allowed him to go to the Oilers. So I think that’s one of the issues there. But Evason and Woodcroft Addison are two guys I would think would definitely be on St. Louis’s list.”