Dallas Stars: Younger Coaches Will Pay Dividends For Team’s Future

The Dallas Stars had a decision to make when hiring their newest head coach this offseason. Should they go with a seasoned veteran or a new, unexperienced guy? They went with the younger route, and it may seem like a risk. But it was the best idea for the franchise in regards to where it stands right now.

What goes into hiring a head coach for an NHL team? At this point, asking the Dallas Stars might be your best bet when trying to find that answer. After all, they have hired three different head coaches since 2013.

It’s become a bit of a cyclical ordeal for Dallas. Ever since Jim Nill took over as general manager and decided to fire Glen Gulutzan, it’s been a carousel behind the bench.

First, Nill brought in veteran Lindy Ruff. After 15 years of coaching with the Buffalo Sabres that ended in Ruff being fired, he took on a new challenge with the Stars. After four years filled with impressive ups and disappointing downs, Ruff was removed and replaced by another veteran.

Ken Hitchcock joined the Stars shortly after the 2016-17 season ended and began his second stint as head coach in Dallas.

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But, after a few months of impressive, improving hockey were wiped out by an abysmal March, Hitchcock decided to retire. For the second season in a row, the Dallas Stars both missed the playoffs and lost their head coach.

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And then they returned to square one. But this time, they took a different approach. Perhaps it was the unbelievably negative finish to a season filled with promise. Or perhaps it was the frequency of cycling through coaches. Either way, Nill made a change.

Instead of aiming primarily for older, more established coaches that had been around the NHL for a while, he cast his net much wider.

“We are going to look at all different angles,” Nill told the media after announcing Hitchcock’s retirement on April 13. “I want to be pretty open-minded about this. You are seeing some success with young coaches coming in, and there are some successful coaches out there that have great resumes.”

Nill intentionally opened the door for younger coaches to be included in the search process. And in the end, he was rewarded for doing so.

The Dallas Stars announced the hiring of 48-year-old coach Jim Montgomery on May 4. Montgomery spent the past five years building a powerhouse hockey team at the University of Denver, winning a national championship in 2017. All in all, he turned in a 125-57-26 record with the Pioneers.

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But there’s one major difference between Montgomery and coaches like Ruff and Hitchcock: he doesn’t have an NHL coaching background. He spent parts of six seasons at the NHL level as a player, but will not coach his first NHL game until October 2018 when he does so behind the Stars’ bench.

Some think that this is a risky move, and it very well may be. Montgomery has a proven system, an excellent track record, and a solid Stars roster in front of him, but he’s never manned the bench at the NHL level. That’s a whole new animal. And considering he is only the fifth coach in history to jump directly from college to the pros, this is pretty uncharted territory.

And to push the youth movement even further, the Dallas Stars hired Todd Nelson to serve as one of Montgomery’s assistants next year. Nelson, 49, served as an assistant to the Atlanta Thrashers for two seasons (2008-2010). But besides his time in Atlanta and half of a season as interim head coach with the Edmonton Oilers in 2014-15, he’s got no significant NHL experience, either.

That may seem like a risk for a team in “win now” mode, but the Stars are making the best move not only for now, but also the future.

The truth is that the Dallas Stars are a relatively young team and could get much younger in the summer ahead. The youth movement is on for the Stars roster. Young prospects for Dallas have been getting chances in the NHL over the past few seasons, but they have been few and far between. And not many of them were extensive, especially during the 2017-18 season.

But when you bring two young coaches in who are used to coaching players under the age of 25 for a living, it’s a good fit.

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The youth movement behind the bench will come with plenty of changes in terms of style and execution. But it should also come with a new trust for younger players. That could come with giving them a new or extended role, working them into everyday NHL players, and pushing the youth movement forward in Dallas after this offseason and down the road.

The perks of having a young coaching staff are many. Not only is the ability to develop players at a more consistent rate and give them more opportunities a big factor, but it becomes a consistent factor. As two young coaches, they are just now getting their feet wet at the NHL level. They may have many years of success awaiting them down the road at the pro level. And it all starts in Dallas.

Jim Nill and the Dallas Stars may very well have set themselves up for a longterm future with these hirings. Montgomery and Nelson will bring new tactics, new ideas, and a newfound respect and desire for young players to break into the league and earn their stripes. Players like Miro Heiskanen, Julius Honka, Jason Dickinson, Gemel Smith, and Roope Hintz are just a few of the players that could be immediately affected.

Hiring a young coaching staff was definitely the best bet for the Stars. The time for taking a chance on a revolutionary idea was long overdue for this franchise. It may be risky, but there’s plenty of room for risk after the shortcomings of the past two seasons. The league is changing, and it’s time the Stars adapted properly. That all starts with the right coaching staff.

This new coaching group has the potential to change the Dallas Stars for the better and do it on a lasting basis. That’s always a good bet. As the young players continue to roll through and develop into NHL-ready talent, Dallas will be ready for their arrival.

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The Stars got considerably younger behind the bench in the first two months of the offseason. And hopefully, that will translate to a new movement for the organization going forward.

Let the youth movement begin.