So Long Bruce: Capitals Replace The Coach

No real surprise that the Washington Capitals fired head coach Bruce Cassidy today. The Capitals have big stars, a big payroll and they stink. No coach survives that situation. It's a wonder Cassidy lasted as long as he did.

Glen Hanlon is the new man behind the bench. Hanlon joined the Caps as an assistant coach last year. He previously coached Washington's AHL affiliate in Portland. This is his first job in charge of an NHL team.

Cassidy was in a tough spot from the beginning of this season, as the Capitals iced perhaps the thinnest defense in the NHL. It did not help when the team traded captain Steve Konowalchuk for a big winger who can't get out of his own way (Bates Battaglia).

But the coach's fate was likely sealed by that fatal affliction: the unhappy superstar. Washington's $11-million man, Jaromir Jagr, has picked up his play recently, and now sits with 30 points in 28 games. But he complained about his ice time, sniped at Cassidy in the press, and talked a good deal about the possibility of a trade to the Rangers.

“I heard I have to earn ice time. I thought I earned it," Jagr told the Washington Times in October. "I haven't talked to Bruce. He's in a higher place than me. I don't have a right to go to the coach and say, 'Can I talk to you?' He should go to the players and ask, but maybe he doesn't need us to know. Maybe he knows everything."

Cassidy probably lost the rest of the team last week, when he suggested that family problems were no excuse for poor play. Some of the Capitals took offense, and the coach later apologized for the remarks.

Cassidy took over the team in June of 2002. Last year he coached the Capitals to a respectable record of 39-29-8-6. But the season ended on a sour note when they blew a 2-0 series lead in the opening round of the playoffs, losing to Tampa Bay in six games.

He leaves Washington after managing just eight victories in 28 games this season. The Capitals are currently tied with Pittsburgh as the worst team in the NHL.