If you were expecting a lot of spicy comments from Colorado Avalanche GM Joe Sakic after Patrick Roy’s staggering resignation, you’re out of luck.
(You also probably haven’t come across a lot of stuffy press conferences.)
One can sniff out the little nuggets of half-truth during these strange times, mind you, but there isn’t a ton of steak or sizzle. (Click here for full audio via the Avalanche.)
You can probably boil down the combination of confusion, spin and contradiction in this tweet from NHL.com’s Nick Cotsonika:
Sakic: "I know we were on the same page." (But he also said he was very surprised by this and caught off guard. Huh?)
— Nick Cotsonika (@cotsonika) August 11, 2016
Seriously, try to take some of these comments at face value without furrowing your brow:
“He was contemplating this for a few weeks. I’m sure it was tough on him… I’m sure he is happy with his decision.” - Sakic on Roy
— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) August 11, 2016
Sakic on if he had an inkling about this weeks ago: “Not at all. I wouldn’t know because Patty didn’t know.”
— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) August 11, 2016
Eh, whatever.
Maybe Sakic and Roy are still good friends. Maybe they weren’t ever really friends in the first place, but rather colleagues sharing mutual respect.
In the grand scheme of things, their relationship only matters much as far as occasional Avalanche tributes/reunions are concerned.
The most important questions have to do with what’s next, and with the Avs still picking up the pieces at the moment, it’s not surprising that things are still pretty vague.
Maybe the most crucial bit of information about the “immediate” coaching search is that Colorado is unlikely to promote anyone from within, at least to be head coach:
Sakic said team will look outside organization for new coach
— Adrian Dater (@adater) August 11, 2016
Otherwise, they’ll take as long as they need to, with a goal if not a deadline for that decision.
Sakic on a new coach: "No timetable. We would obviously like to have one in before training camp."
— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) August 11, 2016
It’s difficult to handicap such a race for a gig thanks to the hot-potato-timing of Roy’s departure.
Which coaches are even allowed to interview for a possible job in mid-August versus shortly after a season? Who can even wiggle out of a contract if the Avs are interested? Would it just go down to coaches who don’t have a job at all?
Roy put the Avs in a tough spot here; there’s little sense denying that.
Credit the Avalanche for not being nasty about it publicly. In the long run, this could very well be a boon for the organization, but they’ll need to mend some short-term wounds.