There is no doubt that being the head coach of the New York Rangers is one of the most coveted positions in the National Hockey League.
The team has been blessed with hockey coaching legends such as Lester Patrick, Emile Francis, Herb Brooks, Roger Neilson and Mike Keenan. Not only are four of these coaches in the Hockey Hall of Fame, but two of them managed to win the Stanley Cup (Patrick and Keenan), something the Rangers have not done a lot of in their 87-year history.
There is nothing like being a head coach and winning a championship in New York. With that said, the Rangers’ head coaching position is also one that comes with a lot of pressure and demands.
The main candidate that is being talked about right now is former Blueshirts' captain/legend/hero, Mark Messier. Along with Keenan, it was Messier that lead the Rangers to their first Stanley Cup in 54 years back in 1994.
While Messier has the name, the Cup rings, the backing of Rangers' fans everywhere and probably the support of many in upper management, no one knows how this will transfer over to the NHL. Playing and leading the team to a Cup on the ice is one thing but doing it as a coach is a whole different kind of animal.
For starters, Messier does not have any kind of coaching experience in the NHL. Yes, he did coach Team Canada in both the Deutschland and Spengler Cups in 2010 but again, that is nothing like coaching in the NHL.
To go with that, Messier has no professional coaching experience. He has not coached in the American Hockey League (AHL), East Coast Hockey League (ECHL) or anywhere overseas.
This was exactly the case with Wayne Gretzky when he became the head coach of the Phoenix Coyotes. The result was four playoff-less seasons and no finish higher than fourth in the Pacific Division.
Secondly, is Messier ready to go back to the daily grind? In his current role as special assistant to general manager Glen Sather, Messier is allowed to come and go as he pleases and does not have to be with the team 24/7 like a head coach has to.
Lastly, this is the kind of move that puts Sather in an extremely tough position. Sather has coached Messier, has been his team's general manager and has hired Messier, which is a lot for one relationship.
Would Sather want to risk ruining that if Messier ends up coaching and Sather has to fire him at some point? Does Sather want to disrupt any kind of peace in Rangerland?
While there is no doubt that Messier would bring a ton of leadership, playing experience, and competitiveness as a head coach for the Blueshirts, he may not be the best guy to hire as a head coach right now.
It would be best for Messier to get some coaching experience somewhere and then when the time is right, see if the Rangers' head coaching position is open again.
What do you folks think?
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