Jim Hiller’s first stretch behind the Maple Leafs bench has already turned into a lightning rod.
With Toronto sitting 8-9-2 in the Atlantic, losers of three straight and fresh off a home shutout against the Devils, the noise around the head coach has gotten loud fast. Injuries have played a role, but the criticism has centered just as much on the choices coming from the bench.
The biggest complaint from fans has been the constant lineup shuffling. Add in what many see as a lack of creativity and the handling of certain players, and Hiller has become the main target as the person expected to steady the group.
Social media has been packed with frustration aimed at the coach, with fans openly calling for his job and very little praise being offered for the system or the decisions he’s made so far this season.
Buffalo Sabres beat writer and Hockey News contributor Michael Augello also weighed in, urging Hiller to stop moving pieces around and settle on more consistent lineups in hopes of creating more consistency.
The backlash is especially striking because Hiller was considered a surprising hire in the first place. Other names that were floated included Bruce Cassidy, John Tortorella and Joe Pavelski, but Toronto went with Hiller, and the reaction now is far from warm.
The criticism hasn’t stopped at the fan base, either. Some of the skepticism is tied to the belief that Hiller was not the organization’s first choice, and that the process around the hire never really produced the kind of confidence the team needed.
That view is sharpened by the fact that Bruce Cassidy was allowed to interview with the team, while John Tortorella was in the mix before saying no, and Joe Pavelski and Jay Woodcroft were seemingly overlooked.
Hiller’s previous run with the Kings is also part of the conversation. He had just been fired after leading Los Angeles to a mediocre record, with some ugly postseason decisions hanging over that stint. Kings fans, too, were loud about their dissatisfaction with him online.
Now, 20 games into the season, the pressure is already building around a coach who is expected to be in place for the next few years. If the results and the criticism keep piling up, this could turn into a long season in more ways than one.
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