Habs setbacks: Alex Burrows comes to Dominique Ducharme's defense
With the Montreal Canadiens failures this season, many analysts believe that Dominique Ducharme's job is in danger. Some even say that he has lost his locker room.
However, assistant coach Alex Burrows believes that his colleague's job as head coach has been judged unfairly, due to the team's circumstances.
"When it comes with the job and the market in Montreal. The fans in Montreal expect to see a good team every year. In a regime change, with the many injuries and the outbreaks at the COVID, it's hard to put the blame on one person. That's where I think it's unfair to Dom."
"There are days when we coach in handcuffs. In the playoffs last year, we had to make some tough decisions. We had the luxury of cutting good players from our roster. This year, we sometimes had a hard time finding 12 forwards and six defensemen. In this context, I find the criticism of Dom harsh. In the NHL, results are the key. We are 32nd in the league. When you think about the history of the Habs, this is unacceptable. But you have to look at the circumstances and analyze them."
Burrows even mentioned that Dominique Ducharme fits exactly the criteria of a modern-day head coach mentioned by new GM Kent Hughes. According to him, "DD" is an excellent communicator, which is a good thing in today's hockey.
A little message to the organization's staff?
"To me, Dom is a modern day coach. He communicates well, has a good game plan, prepares well and works very hard. When I heard Kent's (Hughes) description, I understood that he wants a good communicator as a coach. I see Dom every day. I can confirm that he always keeps his office door open for his players. He doesn't hesitate to talk to players one-on-one, whether it's with veterans or younger players."
"In my younger days, when the coach didn't talk to you, it was a sign that things were going well. When he did talk to you, you got a little more nervous. Sometimes he wanted to get a message across. I could sometimes go a month without talking to my coach."
Clearly, Burrows is a big fan of Dom Ducharme's work. He did what he had to do, which was to stand by his sidekick.
Will that be enough to convince the organization to keep Dom Ducharme as head coach? That's another story...
