New York Rangers vs. Canadiens Coaching Preview
Over the next few days, we will be breaking down the matchup between the New York Rangers and the Montreal Canadiens by the position. In this edition, we look at the coaching matchup.
When you are talking about the best current NHL coaches, two names that will definitely come up in that conversation are Alain Vigneault and Claude Julien.
The two coaches are seasoned veterans who have had success in both the regular season and in the postseason. Julien holds a .605 career winning percentage which just tops Vigneault’s .596 winning percentage. The two coaches have also been to the Stanley Cup Finals twice, including in 2010-2011 when Julien’s Boston Bruins defeated Vigneault’s Vancouver Canucks.
Since going north of the border, Julien has turned a struggling Canadiens team around–even though they were in first place at the time. Julien, in his second stint behind Montreal’s bench, has a 15-4-1 record since he was hired.
Vigneault, who had his contract extended on January 30th, has the Rangers at 47 wins. That is the second-most wins in a season in his Rangers’ tenure.
Special Teams
If you look at the overall numbers, both teams have very average power play and penalty kill percentages. The Rangers power play and penalty kill are ranked 11th and 22nd respectively, and the Canadiens are ranked 15th and 14th respectively.
Since Julien joined the Canadiens, the Habs have traded some offense for defense and the penalty kill is at another level. The Julien-led shorthanded unit has been firing at an 88.9% clip since the coaching change, skyrocketing them from their 22nd in the league ranking.
We all know that Scott Arniel runs the Rangers power play and that Jeff Beukeboom runs their penalty kill, but it is on Alain Vigneault to help make their units a success. Don’t let the Rangers power play rank of 11th overall fool you, they have been extremely inconsistent in that category all season long.
The penalty kill has been an outright joke for a few years now.
The Rangers coverage on the penalty kill is horrible, often leaving men wide open in the slot or in front of the net. The Rangers coaching staff has failed to adapt to the difficulties it has faced and it could be what costs them.
Personnel Decisions
We all know how bad the Rangers coaching staff is in this area. Whether it is putting Pavel Buchnevich on the fourth line, playing Tanner Glass and scratching Buchnevich or sending out the fourth line down a goal with limited time left in the third, the Rangers never cease to amaze their fans with their poor personnel decisions.
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The Canadiens have done a good job with what they have over the past few weeks. They have a fourth line that plays a gritty, hard-nosed game instead of a skill game. The moves for grit that were made by GM Marc Bergevin at the deadline fit Julien’s system well. Julien has always coached his teams to be defensive minded and that is just what the Habs have been since he was hired.
The Rangers have the opposite problem. They are coached to be a defensive minded team but don’t have the personnel to play that way. Just look at the defense they roll out every night. They have the offensive ability to be a problem for the Canadiens, but it is certainly not a matchup that is in their favor.
Summary
Next: What to Watch for in the Season's Final Games
The Canadiens new coaching staff has proven to a lot of people that they can be a threat in the Eastern Conference this year. The Rangers coaching staff is a bit of a mixed bag. The team has the overall numbers, but if you have followed the team closely at all this year you would know that they don’t tell the whole story.