The New York Rangers should just bite the bullet and keep Vigneault until the end of the season.
On Sunday night, after the New York Rangers got manhandled by the Philadelphia Flyers, there were rumors floating around the web about Alain Vigneault’s future with the team.
According to Hockey30.com, a French Canadien hockey blog, Alain Vigneault was going to be fired before Thursday night’s game in Montreal.
While the site isn’t a reliable source, it got me thinking: Is firing Vigneault now the best thing for the team going forward?
I don’t think it is.
Obviously, I want him gone. I can’t stand his inability and/or disinterest in taking responsibility for anything that goes on with the team.
But at the end of the day, I doubt the team will bring him back for next season. I mean, Jeff Gorton and Glen Sather were trying to avoid questions about his future in their most recent presser. That can’t bode well. Also, it is well known that Vigneault is not the proper coach for a team that is rebuilding.
So I am very confident the Rangers will have a different coach behind the bench to start next season.
Related: Jeff Gorton cannot overplay his hand again
With that said, if Vigneault was to be fired today and they give Lindy Ruff the interim head coach tag, I’d be nervous.
If the team was to somehow go on a run at the end of the season, winning 7 of their last 10 or something like that, I don’t want the front office to feel obligated to give him the full-time job going forward.
I don’t know how likely that is. Ruff is also not a coach you have on for a rebuild, but I still think giving that scenario a chance is a bad idea.
After game 82, the Rangers should clean house and fire the entire coaching staff minus Benoit Allaire. They should go after Sheldon Keefe in the offseason. He has had a terrific career with the Toronto Marlies and has done wonders in developing a lot of Toronto’s young talent.
But for right now, the train is falling off the tracks with Vigneault “trying to win” and it is doing wonders. The Rangers have the 10th worst record in the league with Florida, Chicago and Detroit right on their tale. The more the team free falls, the better chance they get at getting a top-five pick in the entry draft.
Next: Ranking the team's assets at the trade deadline
This season has been an unmitigated disaster. Just let this squad crash and burn because it is not worth trying to save at this point. Trade your assets at the deadline, let Vigneault do his thing, and can him as soon as the season ends.