Under the Radar Candidates for Blackhawks Coaching Search

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James
May 29, 2022 (12:17)

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Chicago is a great city and a great hockey market. Unfortunately there hasn't been much to be excited about hockey wise since the 2015 Stanley Cup.

The Chicago Blackhawks have always paid top dollar for its staff, so that is a positive in attracting top caliber coaching. In terms of roster development, the Hawks are sort of a mishmash. They have star players like Patrick Kane, Alex DeBrincat and Seth Jones and youngsters who may or may not be real NHL players. Given the upheaval in terms of the roster and the organization as a whole, I'd expect a new head coach to have a lot of say in how to get this team back to playoff contention.

The defense is not very good (26th in goals allowed per game and 24th on the penalty kill). And the goaltending is not very good. The offense is top-heavy and finished 29th in the league in goals per game. Not exactly an easy situation to take over and find success. People may think Barry Trotz is the answer and he likely is, for a team on the brink of contention. Chicago as they stand now, is far from that stage.

The Hawks could stick with interim head coach Derek King, try to bottom out completely and figure out what to do post-Kane and Jonathan Toews, who are under contract through 2023. But that hardly seems like a way to endear yourself to fans and to young players like DeBrincat or Taylor Raddysh. Here are a few under the radar choices to take over behind the bench.

Derek Lalonde
Pros: Lalonde, 49, has been on Jon Cooper's staff in Tampa since 2018 and is regarded as one of the NHL's top assistant coaches. Lalonde is known as a "players' coach" and has been successful in the minor leagues.

Cons: Lalonde may prefer to stay in a highly successful program in Tampa, with no signs of slowing down.

Spencer Carbery
Pros: Carbery, 40, has been successful at every level he's coached in the minor leagues and is currently an assistant with the Toronto Maple Leafs who was in charge of their successful power play, and has been praised for his communicative skills. He is a young coach, understands the developmental process, and also appears to have a bright future as a potential NHL bench boss.

Cons: Carbery doesn't have much NHL coaching experience, and for that matter, only four years in the AHL. It could be a big payoff, but the lack of NHL experience is somewhat worrisome.

Jim Montgomery
Pros: Montgomery, 52, is currently an assistant coach with the St. Louis Blues but has head coaching experience at both the NHL and NCAA levels. He guided Denver to a national title in 2017 and was also named Coach of the Year. He served as the Dallas Stars head coach from 2018-20 and went 60-43-10. He likes to utilize a puck-possession game in which stingy defense is all created by the way you play offensively. In his first and only full season with Dallas, the Stars yielded the NHL's second-fewest goals per game at 2.44 and had a top-five penalty kill at 82.8 percent.

Cons: Montgomery was let go by Dallas for "unprofessional conduct." He later revealed that he checked himself into rehab for alcohol abuse, which played a significant role in his firing. Really good coach that obviously carries some baggage.