The NHL coaching vacancy list grew on Monday with the firing of Calgary head coach Bob Hartley. That marks three teams that have fired their coaches upon season's end — Ottawa dismissed Dave Cameron and Anaheim fired Bruce Boudreau earlier this offseason.
With three teams looking for new head coaches, the Flyers are approaching the one-year anniversary of the hiring of Dave Hakstol.
Hakstol was brought in by Ron Hextall as a virtual unknown, certainly well-known around the college hockey world, but this was the pros.
With Hakstol's first year officially under his belt, let's look back at the hiring and the ups and downs of his first season in the NHL.
First things first, there was the day of the hiring. The Flyers brought in Hakstol from the University of North Dakota with no prior experience, a rarity for a new NHL head coach. That said, he was well-versed in hockey knowledge, he was firm on bringing his coaching style to Philadelphia and promised accountability and leadership in the locker room.
If that was the case, the mission in year one was accomplished. But it didn't come without some turmoil along the way.
There were plenty of times over the course of the season where the Flyers playoff chances were doubtful. The Flyers started off October with a 4-2-1 record, a nice reversal of what previous seasons had seen, then fell to 5-8-3 before you could blink. That was mid-November.
From there, the Flyers played fairly well and consistent for the remainder of the season. The issue was the deficit in the standings. The Flyers had fallen so far behind in the playoff picture that even the slightest slip-ups — a three-game losing streak here, a late-game loss there — were enough to knock the wind out of the sails on the Flyers comeback efforts.
Things really changed, however, in January. The Flyers had started to show signs of improvement in December, but didn't have a consistent winning record to show for it. As 2016 began with a loss in Los Angeles, the Flyers record was 15-15-7.
For the previous two months, the talk was geared more toward draft picks and another year of building over any hopes of success.
The Flyers won their next four games, and despite a three-game losing streak late in the month, closed January and went into the All-Star break with an overtime win over the Washington Capitals. Upon return, there was life, but it would take an improbable run to make anything of it.
The Flyers rode the momentum from the win over the Capitals and added back-to-back wins after, but a last-season equalizer and shootout loss to the Rangers on Feb. 6 turned into a three-game losing streak again. It was Feb. 11 and the Flyers absolutely needed a win over the lowly Buffalo Sabres.
They got the win, but followed that with more inconsistent play, losing four of the next six games. Then the Flyers rolled off eight wins in their next 10 games. Through it all, the Flyers credited the system of Hakstol. It was about sticking to the game plan, not getting frustrated or out of sorts by a deficit and in most cases it worked.
Hakstol set the foundation for a system that the players started to believe in and it led to a playoff appearance in a year when expectations were down and development was more important than results. Hakstol got both results and key development, as players like Shayne Gostisbehere and Nick Cousins saw increased roles and playing time.
Perhaps the biggest compliment of all came from Barry Trotz after the Flyers first-round series loss to the Capitals. Trotz called the Flyers "a well-coached team," which coming from the likely winner of the Jack Adams Award is high praise.
Ultimately, for a first-year coach with no prior experience, Hakstol not only proved he was up to the task of coaching in the NHL but showed his skills in development and being a fit for helping the younger prospects make the transition from the minors or juniors to the NHL as well. Hextall's gamble, at least in year one, paid off and for a change, the Flyers aren't a team with their coaching in question.
Kevin Durso is managing editor for Flyerdelphia. Follow him on Twitter @Kevin_Durso.
