Judging by Dale Hunter’s decision to bolt for the London Knights, it doesn’t seem like the Washington Capitals were the ones hoping to make his stay as head coach a short one.* Either way, John Shannon makes an interesting point that Adam Oates received a greater commitment to be the team’s head coach in the form of a three-year contract.
Now, if you’re familiar with the laughable job security that professional sports coaches “enjoy,” you know that a three-year deal won’t necessarily guarantee that Oates will keep his job that whole time. Still, it’s a bigger commitment in that they’d have to pay him for those years - under certain circumstances, anyway.
It’s been a great day for Oates, no doubt, but the stability of getting a three-year contract might be the most underrated part of it. He’ll probably bask in that whole “Hall of Fame” thing a little bit more, though.
* - Or at least Hunter was the most adamant about it being a one-year thing ...