Rangers Should Bring In Adam Oates To Run The Power Play
Adam Oates works the NJ PP (NHL)
So how many coaches is too many or do we really care? Running up to today, both NY Rangers assistants were up for jobs in Carolina, Pittsburgh and Vancouver. Yesterday, the Hurricanes hired Bill Peters and the Penguins are close to hiring Willie Desjardins.
It’s believed Willie Desjardins has made his way to Pittsburgh. He’s the frontrunner for the coaching job but a deal needs to be finalized.
— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) June 20, 2014
Those two hires means Ulf Samuelsson looks safe to stay on staff for next year. As for Scott Arniel, he is still in the running for the Canucks job, but it’s likely that Dan Bylsma will land there.
Currently, the Rangers have 5 coaches:
Head Coach – Alain Vigneault
Assistant – Ulf Samuelsson
Assistant – Scott Arniel
Assistant – Daniel Lacroix (eye in the sky)
Goalie Coach – Benoit Allaire
But should they add a power play coach to the mix?
Adam Oates is out there and is one of the great power play minds. His hire would jeopardize Scott Arniel’s considering it’s his responsibility to run the power play, but Daniel Lacroix could maybe take on a new role within the organization as well.
The Rangers power play was decent during the regular season. In actuality it was slightly above the league average at 18.18% (NHL avg. 17.84%). However, it absolutely tanked in the playoffs. NY finished with a 12.1% power play efficiency, and an abysmal 9.1% in the Final. In contrast, the L.A. Kings worked it at a 23.5%.
Yesterday, we wrote about Adam Oates and his power plays. He has a great mind for the game and excelled on the man advantage as a player. Fortunately for him, he’s been able to carry that over to coaching. With the Capitals, his power plays worked at a 26% and 23% clip.
Oates uses a 1-3-1 alignment, where one man covers the point, three are across the middle and one big body is around the net. This formation generates plenty of offensive options by making a penalty kill unit guess who will get the puck next. It’s only drawback is that is requires quick and accurate passing, plus one booming shot.
Now if the Rangers feel he is someone to consider, they need to move quick. The Boston Bruins are already eyeing Oates for their bench to assist Claude Julien. His addition to their staff will only bolster their chances of returning to the Eastern Conference Final at the very least.
Adam Oates used to play with Neely, and it doesn’t look like he’s in the running for head coach jobs. He could be asked to replace Ward.
— Bruins Updates (@BruinsUpdates1) June 19, 2014
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