The hockey world is tuned in to the end of the NHL's regular season, as teams fight for playoff position. The New York Rangers are among those teams, and they currently sit one point out of the Eastern Conference's final Wild Card spot in the playoffs.
The Rangers have 13 games left in the regular season and they're on the cusp of a playoff spot, but one prominent New York media member believes they need to make a coaching change.
“You would think that since the Rangers had a day off that they’d be a little bit more rested,” Boomer Esiason said on Wednesday , following the Rangers' 2-1 loss to the Calgary Flames on Tuesday.
“They were so disconnected, so disinterested … [head coach Peter Laviolette] has gotta go," the former quarterback said on WFAN.
Esiason continued to call out the Rangers for a lack of effort, and he ultimately laid blame at the feet of the head coach.
“You could tell that the players just, either they don’t give a damn, or something is amiss within the body of the team,” Esiason continued.
“[Something] has been amiss since they lost last year to the Panthers in the playoffs.”
To his credit, Laviolette agreed with the general assessment of the team, saying after the game that "there was nothing there."
The hockey world is tuned in to the end of the NHL's regular season, as teams fight for playoff position. The New York Rangers are among those teams, and they currently sit one point out of the Eastern Conference's final Wild Card spot in the playoffs.
The Rangers have 13 games left in the regular season and they're on the cusp of a playoff spot, but one prominent New York media member believes they need to make a coaching change.
“You would think that since the Rangers had a day off that they’d be a little bit more rested,” Boomer Esiason said on Wednesday , following the Rangers' 2-1 loss to the Calgary Flames on Tuesday.
“They were so disconnected, so disinterested … [head coach Peter Laviolette] has gotta go," the former quarterback said on WFAN.
Esiason continued to call out the Rangers for a lack of effort, and he ultimately laid blame at the feet of the head coach.
“You could tell that the players just, either they don’t give a damn, or something is amiss within the body of the team,” Esiason continued.
“[Something] has been amiss since they lost last year to the Panthers in the playoffs.”
To his credit, Laviolette agreed with the general assessment of the team, saying after the game that "there was nothing there."
“They were faster than us, they got to the ice quicker than us, they were more ready. That’s the way the game played out.”
Laviolette led the Rangers to the Eastern Conference Final last year in his first season as head coach, where they lost to the eventual Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers.
Firing Laviolette would be a repeat of history for the Rangers, who also fired their previous coach after only two seasons and a conference final appearance.
New York will look to bounce back and get into the playoff hunt with their next game on Thursday, but they have a tough test in front of them as they'll face the Toronto Maple Leafs.
We'll see how Laviolette and the Rangers respond against Toronto, and how they handle the remainder of the regular season after being called out by Esiason.
“They were faster than us, they got to the ice quicker than us, they were more ready. That’s the way the game played out.”
Laviolette led the Rangers to the Eastern Conference Final last year in his first season as head coach, where they lost to the eventual Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers.
Firing Laviolette would be a repeat of history for the Rangers, who also fired their previous coach after only two seasons and a conference final appearance.
New York will look to bounce back and get into the playoff hunt with their next game on Thursday, but they have a tough test in front of them as they'll face the Toronto Maple Leafs.
We'll see how Laviolette and the Rangers respond against Toronto, and how they handle the remainder of the regular season after being called out by Esiason.
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