With the news that Kirs Knoblauch is replacing Jay Woodcroft as Oilers coach, we get to know the new man behind the bench in Edmonton.
It really doesn’t seem right, but Jay Woodcroft is out in Edmonton. Sportsnet‘s Elliotte Friedman reported the firing first, before the Oilers confirmed Woodcroft’s dismissal themselves, along with assistant coach Dave Manson.
The Oilers also announced Kris Knoblauch will take over head coaching duties, joined by assistant coach Paul Coffey. This will be the fifth coaching change during Connor McDavid’s and Leon Draisaitl’s time in Edmonton which is, quite frankly, ridiculous.
We already advocated for Woodcroft being given more time, and it seemed possible Saturday night’s 4-1 win in Seattle might have helped. However, there had been speculation the organisation had already made up their mind, and were just waiting for the conclusion of the three-game road trip.
In the end, it didn’t matter that the 47-year-old had the highest winning percentage among all coaches in Oilers history. Or that he took them to their first Western Conference Finals since 2005-06, or that he helped them win 50 regular season games for the first time since 1986-87.
Okay, rant over; what’s done is done. Here are eight things to know about the Oilers’ new main man behind the bench:
1) Koblauch was selected in the seventh round (166th overall) by the New York Islanders, in the 1997 draft. However, he never played a single game in the NHL.
2) Including prior to being drafted, Knoblauch played parts of six seasons in the WHL, with the Red Deer Rebels, Edmonton/Kootenay Ice and Lethbridge Hurricanes. During that time he appeared in a combined 213 games, producing 125 total points in the process. (56 goals and 69 assists.)
3) In between spells with the UHL’s Asheville Smoke and CHL’s Austin Ice Bats, the winger spent five seasons with the Alberta Golden Bears in the CWUAA between 1999-2004. He played 191 games and totalled 233 points. (94 goals and 139 assists.)
4) Knoblauch retired after playing in France, to pursue a career in coaching. He spent three seasons as an assistant in the WHL with the Prince Albert Raiders and Kootenay Ice, before taking over the latter as head coach for the 2010-11 season.
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5) Knoblauch led the Kootenay Ice to the WHL championship in his very first campaign in charge. He would leave after two seasons, to coach the Eerie Otters in the OHL for five seasons.
6) This is where the relevant Oilers connection comes in, with Knoblauch coaching McDavid for three seasons when he played for the Otters. Ironically it was after the superstar had left, that Knoblauch was named OHL Coach of the Year in 2015-16, then won the OHL championship a season later.
7) The Imperial, Saskatchewan native then made the transition to the NHL as assistant coach for two seasons between 2017-18, with the Philadelphia Flyers. Next, he joined the New York Rangers, to take over as head coach for their AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack.
8) Prior to taking up the position with the Oilers, Knoblauch compiled a 119-90-32 record during four-plus seasons in Hartford. He also briefly coached the Rangers during COVID-19 as a result of the coaching staff testing positive, winning four of the six games he was in charge.
Overall, we imagine the decision to fire Woodcroft will be a polarising one among Oilers fans, who must be fed up with the constant changing and underachieving. All they can hope is that somehow, some way, Knoblauch is the man to save the season for their team.