Edmonton Oilers Hire Dave Tippett As Their Next Head Coach, Hoping He Can Turn The Franchise Back Into A Winner

By Jordan Long

The Edmonton Oilers hired their next Head Coach.  The job had been open since the Oilers let go of Todd McLellan 20 games into the season.  At the time Edmonton was 9-10-1.  They were hoping the interim Head Coach Ken Hitchcock would turn the year around.  He didn’t. Hitchcock’s record with the Oilers was 26-28-8. Edmonton finished at 35-38-9 for 79 points, missing the playoffs for the 11^th time in 12 years.  It was time for a coaching change.

                Edmonton decided the best man for the job is Dave Tippett who has previous Head Coaching experience in the NHL.  He coached at the NHL level for a total of 14 years with the Dallas Stars and the Arizona Coyotes.  With Dallas from 2002 to 2009, Tippett was successful with a record of 271-156-28-37 or a winning percentage of .617.  The Stars made the playoffs 5 times.   He was let go after 2009 when Dallas finished at 36-35-11.

                Arizona took a chance on him.  They anticipated Tippett would turn the franchise into a winner.  It didn’t happen.  In 8 years for the Coyotes, his overall record was a disappointing 282-257-83.  The Coyotes reached the postseason 3 times but he couldn’t coach them to a Stanley Cup Final.  Tippett’s record with both franchises was 553-413-28-120, a winning percentage of .563.

                The Oilers knew they wanted a coach with NHL knowledge behind the bench.  According to NBCSsports.com, Oiler’s General Manager Ken Holland said, “Dave brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to the organization. He is a great communicator and has consistently led teams known for their level of compete. I look forward to seeing Dave guide the Oilers this fall and we are all excited to have him on board.”

                Tippett has work to do to make the Oilers a winning franchise once again.  They have not advanced to the Stanley Cup Final since 2006 when they lost to the Carolina Hurricanes.  Tippett hopes to become a postseason contender every year.

                Tippet has players he will count on.  These include forwards Connor McDavid, Milan Lucic, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins.  These skaters must understand Tippet’s coaching philosophy and that should help them score more goals.  This may be the difference in them making the postseason.  The Oilers need to give Tippet time to turn the franchise into a winner. The ultimate goal for Tippett should be to bring a Stanley Cup to Edmonton for the 1^st time since 1990.