Washington Capitals should fire Barry Trotz

The Washington Capitals are in for an offseason of changes. One of them should be behind the bench. 

After failing to win the Stanley Cup despite having the best regular season record in the NHL for the second consecutive year, it’s safe to say the Washington Capitals will see changes this offseason. Of course, a majority of them will be via the roster. T.J. Oshie, Justin Williams, Karl Alzner, Kevin Shattenkirk and Daniel Winnik  are unrestricted free agents and it would be surprising to see more than two of them return. However, the most positive one might be one that should happen behind the bench. It’s time for the Capitals to fire Barry Trotz.

First of all, changes should be expected. It’s almost impossible for this to come via the roster other than the free agents. So the next best places to go for change are the front office and the coaching staff. Brian MacLellan is at worst an above average general manager who has put impressive pieces in Washington. He’s not the issue. MacLellan has given Trotz the tools necessary to contend for a Stanley Cup.

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Barry Trotz is a good coach, but one who has fell short in his first three seasons with the Caps. And he’s also a coach who has mishandled various players and made some downright baffling decisions. Considering what we as fans know now, why in heaven’s name did it take so long for Alex Ovechkin to get moved to the third line when he was clearly injured? If this move happens a game or two earlier than it did, the Capitals have a much better chance of advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals.

There’s also the issue of Nate Schmidt. I’m not sure what else number 88 has to do to gain the trust of Trotz. Barry went with Orpik and Alzner in key situations over Schmidt, who has proven to be a very effective defenseman, throughout the postseason.

This isn’t the first time the Capitals have had issues with Trotz. During the series between the Washington Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins in 2016, he went with Taylor Chorney and Mike Weber instead of giving Schmidt a chance in Game 4. Naturally, the Caps lost 3-2 in overtime despite Pittsburgh not having Kris Letang. Trotz also went with Chorney over Schmidt in Game 6, which saw a very similar result. Great coaches rarely make these mistakes. And when they do, they typically learn from them. Trotz hasn’t.

Letting go of him is necessary if the Washington Capitals are going to continue to grow. He deserves credit for getting the Caps out of a very bad spot in 2014. But it feels like the Capitals have maxed out under him. Especially when the players seem to think there’s a mental hurdle and Trotz doesn’t seem to agree.

The players bring up a darn good point. There is a mental hurdle of some kind. Something is wrong. The Washington Capitals still lack a sense of urgency when they need it the most. This is where their next head coach comes in.

If the Capitals aren’t going to blow up the core (which might not be a terrible idea), they must replace Trotz with someone who can take them over the hump. Of the recent coaches to win a Stanley Cup, two are available – Dan Bylsma and Darryl Sutter. Which one is better? One has a track record of winning with a less than ideal roster (Sutter) while the other needed Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby to carry him to a Stanley Cup and has done nothing since then (Bylsma).

Next: End of an Era?

The Washington Capitals can either play it safe by keeping Trotz or be bold by firing him and hiring Sutter (or someone else). History shows that fate tends to reward those who are bold.