With Alain Vigneault’s New York Rangers still in doubt, the focus is shifting to coaching replacements. There is one on the market that the Rangers could use: Sheldon Keefe.
The New York Rangers season has been an up and down roller coaster this year. For a couple of years now, the coaching situation has been in a state of limbo. Will the Rangers fire Vigneault? Does he get more chances, or is he on his last legs?
Well, this season looks like the make or break. The trend of poor play being held up by Henrik Lundqvist has continued again, and its time for the team to explore its options. While the search for players to make trades for, a new head coach must be in the mix too.
So, in the midst of a season desperate for change, the Rangers must sell, and change the culture. Alain Vigneault must go, sooner rather than later. His replacement, however, is not another veteran coach. His replacement must be someone fresh, someone new.
They need a coach willing to play the young talent the Rangers are building up. They need a coach who will embrace the broadly sweeping change to NHL culture, not hide behind the stubborn mindset of old time hockey.
The AHL’s Toronto Marlies have just the man for the job: Sheldon Keefe.
Keefe: The Change the Rangers Need
One of the issues plaguing the Rangers across their entire existence has been the need to make big splashes. They do it with free agents and they do it with coaches. The big name needs to arrive in New York for marketing purposes, even if it isn’t the best choice.
This culture must be abandoned now for the greater good. Sheldon Keefe is a young, energetic coach that understands the game as it needs to be played now. He isn’t some fossil the Rangers will dig up because he’s a big name, or he’s an ex-Cup champ; no, he’s a fresh voice for a new, modern era.
As coach of the Toronto Marlies, Keefe has led his teams to several terrific regular seasons. While he has yet to win a Calder Cup, he has proven his style as successful at the level he is at now. Furthermore, his AHL experience developing prospects shows his amiability towards young talent, and his penchant for using them in the roles they deserve.
He led both the OHL Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds and the Toronto Marlies to 50 win seasons. He is ready to make the jump to the NHL. While the Rangers history of selecting coaches makes this seem unlikely, it does not mean the idea is wrong. The Rangers culture must change to fit the changes the league is making, and Keefe is a huge first step towards this.
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The Rangers cannot be complacent in this situation. The transition may be hard. It may involve losing more than fans have been used to seeing. In the long run, however, it’s time to change the notion that the Rangers must make a big splash. It’s time for change. No Alain Vigneault. No Lindy Ruff. They need a fresh, new, modern voice, and they need it now.