Breaking News: San Jose Sharks Hire Todd McLellan to Coach Team

(Photo courtesy of www.sjsharks.com)

A press conference has been scheduled for 11am PDT on Thursday, June 12, 2008 to announce Todd McLellan as the Sharks' new head coach. He spent the last three seasons as an assistant coach on Mike Babcock's Detroit Red Wings staff.

According to the article on the Sharks' website, he deserves primary credit for coaching the Wings' power play that finished third in the league this past season. The Sharks finished 10th. In the playoffs, the Sharks fell to 12th and the Red Wings fell to ninth.

In a statement released by General Manager Doug Wilson, he said: “Todd McLellan has an excellent track record and has had success at every level of coaching in his career. He comes from one of the top organizations in all of sports and has been exposed to some of the brightest hockey minds in the game including Jim Devallano, Ken Holland, Scotty Bowman, Steve Yzerman and Mike Babcock, along with Jacques Lemaire, to name just a few. We feel that Todd is an excellent fit for our hockey team.”

According to the website, McLellan said, “It’s a very good feeling. From the first moment Doug called to the moment he offered the job, I felt comfortable. I think the Sharks have done a tremendous job. You don’t get that close to 50 wins for a number of years in a row without a lot of talent. It’s a matter of getting over the hump. There are some real parallels between the Wings and the Sharks.”

McLellan spent five seasons as head coach in the minor leagues with the Cleveland Lumberjacks (IHL) and Houston Aeros (AHL), including capturing the 2003 AHL Calder Cup Championship. Prior to that, he was named Western Hockey League Coach of the Year in 2000 and WHL Executive of the Year in 1997.

No team McLellan has coached in his 14 years, either as an assistant or head coach, has missed the postseason, but he has never been a head coach at the NHL level.

Meanwhile, there were three coaches, John Tortorella, Pat Burns, and Bob Hartley (in order of preference), available who not only have NHL experience, but are Stanley Cup champions.

Doug Wilson has shown himself to be a shrewd GM, but this hiring is a head-scratcher. I will give him the benefit of the doubt, but I will not conceal those doubts, either.