Plenty of blame to go around after Nolan's ouster and much more

Ted Nolan has a long history of not getting along with general managers. AP Allan Muir's Mailbag Submit a comment or question for Allan. Name: Email: Hometown: Question: SEND

Coaches get hired and fired. Players being signed on both sides of the pond. Can someone tell me when the offseason is supposed to start?

With so many issues to touch on, let's take a dip into the mailbag.

I'm absolutely livid over [the Islanders] firing of Ted Nolan. Why on earth would they get rid of a proven coach, especially at this time? That place is a complete sideshow. I'm done. I wish I had season tickets so I could make a statement by giving them up!
-- Ronald Li, New York

Going by the amount of mail I received in the aftermath of Monday's firing, you're not alone. I'm guessing a number of Islanders fans are completely fed up after years of abuse from Wang the Merciless. They may not seek out another club to root for, but they're at the point where they simply tune this team out. And who can blame them?

Your use of the word sideshow is close, but I think the term you're looking for is three-ring circus. There was plenty of blame to go around on this decision, and no one walks away without some blood on their hands, not even Nolan.

The lion's share belongs to owner Charles Wang, whose guns are constantly half-cocked and pointing at his own feet. In some ways, he reminds me of Jerry Jones of the Dallas Cowboys, another owner whose overestimation of his understanding of the game and a desire to be seen as one of the sports guys in his early days led him to make a series of poor calls that doomed the organization to years in the toilet. Eventually Jones figured out he'd look at lot smarter, and learn a lot faster, by surrounding himself with qualified help, rather than guys who happened to be nearby with some free time on their hands. The fact that the Cowboys now are regarded as contenders should give Islanders fans at least faint hope that it is possible for a meddler to turn things around.

In this case, Wang's decision to hire Nolan in 2006 wasn't a bad one in and of itself, but choosing a coach himself instead of hiring a GM first and allowing him to make the call set the stage for this failure.

Wang's second kick at the GM can, Garth Snow, didn't acquit himself particularly well, either. It's not unusual to see a coach and GM squabbling over quality of talent or team direction. But Snow's inexperience and unease at not having his own man in place was evident in his mishandling of the situation. If he was serious about a youth movement -- not a bad idea for a franchise whose veterans were a mix of aging and ill-fitting parts -- he could have extended Nolan's contract beyond next season to reassure his coach that he wasn't simply grooming the kids for his successor. Instead, he left Nolan hanging, which pretty much ensured that he would be gone at some point this season. Snow also grossly overestimated the quality of talent he'd assembled, and underestimated the impressive job Nolan performed in getting the squad into the playoffs in 2007 and keeping an injury-riddled side competitive for much of last season.

And while Nolan deserves credit for those efforts, he also has to realize we all have to answer to someone. If the boss asks you to work in the kids as part of the organizational plan, you work in the kids. Losing is tough, but for Nolan this job was about more than just wins and losses. This was a second chance, an opportunity to prove he could be a team player and maybe, just maybe, ditch the reputation as someone who can't get along with his GM. Safe to say that tag is tattooed onto him now, making it unlikely he'll be given another NHL gig anytime soon ... if ever.

Maybe the only surprising element of Monday's dismissal is the timing. Clearly this rift had been deemed irreparable during the season, and only Wang's loyalty to Nolan prevented an earlier dismissal. At this point, Snow's basically choosing from the leftovers after the teams who were more resolute had their pick of the coaching litter. But at least he'll be able to pick his own man this time around.

I just spent most of the last week at the Boston Bruins development camp and came away very impressed with Brad Marchand and Blake Wheeler. What do you think their chances are of making the team this season?

Well, if you spent that much time at camp, you've seen more of them lately than I have. But from what I was told by someone who was there every day, the duo clearly stood out from the pack (other than the rehabbing duo of Patrice Bergeron and Manny Fernandez, of course).

Marchand, a 20-year-old right winger, is a nasty pet who'll do whatever it takes to win. He already has NHL speed and the courage to go into the hard areas, but he's also a player who needs to prove to the organization that he can keep his head on straight after incidents with Team Canada and Halifax of the QMJHL. Wheeler, the Phoenix Coyotes first rounder-turned-UFA who was snagged earlier this summer by the Bruins, caught everyone's attention with his speed and shot but also gave the impression that he needs time to fill out his big frame.

The best guess though is that both will start the season with Providence of the AHL, and acclimate to the pro game with the chance to earn significant ice time with the Baby B's. Then maybe if things go well, both could get a shot in Boston later in the year.

That's just a guess, though. After seeing Milan Lucic last summer, I shared the almost unanimous opinion that he had no chance of sticking in Boston. Bruins fans know how that one turned out.