March 21, 2006

Kings fire coach Murray; hire Torchetti: "A decision of this magnitude is never easy and cannot be taken lightly," Taylor said in a release. "Ultimately, I have not been happy with the direction our hockey team has been going, and without making a change now, I didn't see that direction changing."

posted by wingnut4life to hockey at 09:38 PM - 6 comments

Wow. Not really sure what to think, I'm kinda numb right now. I thought Andy Murray was gonna take the Kings to the promise-land. Guess I was wrong. In his defense, they have had a lot of injuries, but so have other teams. It seems they have been playing without much passion. Monday nights 5-0 loss to the Avs showed that. They better wake-the fuck-up and start playing with some heart or they'll be home again during playoff time. Murray's a great hockey guy. He'll land on his feet somewhere. Good luck coach. Let's pick it up Kings, time's running out!

posted by Desert Dog at 10:12 PM on March 21, 2006

This might not be the worst thing that could happen for the playoff run. The Kings are not without talent, and making the playoffs (or even a shot at steallng a round or two) is still within reach if they get their mojo back. I said "if." They're in nothing-to-lose time right now, so if they were going to let Murray go, this is as good a time as any.

posted by chicobangs at 12:28 AM on March 22, 2006

I do feel bad for the guy. Injuries were definately a factor, but a good coach needs to work around that. You can also blame the GM for lack of depth. As a side note, my favorite memory of Murray came when the Kings played my Wings a couple years back. He got an honest to goodness "bench" minor when he got so pissed off he picked up one of the benches and threw it out on the ice. Absolute Kodak moment!

posted by wingnut4life at 07:23 AM on March 22, 2006

Murray is a dam good coach and its a shame they let him go. Personally i am a SHARKS fan and am elated at the way we have been playing . The reason why the kings are not doing as well as they should is the injures Bure and Flinn since last year and Demitra are big time losses .Better luck next year king fans

posted by trrron at 02:50 PM on March 22, 2006

Look no further than Mathieu Garon for one of the reasons Murray got canned. He's been costing them too many games recently. It's too bad, but to be honest, this team was overacheiving for the first half of this year, and I think the second half is a better reflection of their overall talent and depth. That and no Demitra = no chance.

posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 03:28 PM on March 22, 2006

It's got to suck to be a coach in the NHL. The salary is good, but job security is horrible. Players can have an off-year. Coaches, not so much.

posted by Samsonov14 at 05:41 PM on March 22, 2006

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