On Sunday, the Edmonton Oilers fired head coach Jay Woodcroft and assistant coach Dave Manson.On Sunday, the Edmonton Oilers fired head coach Jay Woodcroft and assistant coach Dave Manson.On Sunday, the Edmonton Oilers fired head coach Jay Woodcroft and assistant coach Dave Manson.Kris Knoblauch has been named head coach of the team. Former Oilers defenseman Paul Coffey will assist him.
Even though the Oilers ended their losing streak Saturday night with a 4-1 victory in Seattle, the decision was made. The victory was Edmonton’s third in 13 games this season.
“Really, after we lost to San Jose on Thursday night, Jeff Jackson [chief executive officer of hockey operations] and I started talking really seriously about whether we should consider making a coaching change and then obviously made a decision,” said Oilers general manager Ken Holland during a press conference at Rogers Place on Sunday afternoon.
“I’d like to express my gratitude to [Woodcroft and Manson] for their contributions to our team over the last two years.” They put in a lot of effort. They’re good hockey players.
After Dave Tippett was fired, Woodcroft took over the team midway through the 2021-22 season. In 143 games behind the Oilers’ bench, he went 79-41-13.
He also led the team to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs last season and to the third round in 2022. Both years, the Oilers were defeated by the Stanley Cup champions, Colorado in 2022 and Las Vegas in 2023.
Knoblauch comes to Edmonton after coaching the American Hockey League’s Hartford Wolf Pack. He has NHL assistant coaching experience with the Philadelphia Flyers.
When Oilers captain Connor McDavid was a major junior star, he was the head coach of the Ontario Hockey League’s Erie Otters.
“It’s been a crazy 24 hours for myself,” Knoblauch admitted. “I was on the bench (Saturday) in Hartford, and then on a plane to get here
When Oilers captain Connor McDavid was a major junior star, he was the head coach of the Ontario Hockey League’s Erie Otters.
“To be here as a head coach is a little bit of a dream for me,” said Knoblauch. “I met my wife here, and I have a lot of friends here, so this opportunity with the Edmonton Oilers is really, really exciting for me
Knoblauch said he’s looking forward to meeting with the players, getting to know them, and telling them what his expectations are for the rest of the season as the team attempts to turn around a 3-9-1 start to a season that many predicted would end with a Stanley Cup in Alberta’s capital.
“Ultimately, I see a very talented team that is clearly underperforming.” “This is why I’m here,” he explained
Coffey has been a consultant to Oilers owner Daryl Katz.
He’ll try to help the team recapture the success it had during his glory years in the 1980s. Coffey spent seven of his 21 NHL seasons in Edmonton, where he scored 661 of his 1,531 career points, helped the Oilers win three of their five Stanley Cups, and earned two Norris Trophies as the league’s best defenseman.
“The respect I have for this organization and Daryl is second to none,” Coffey went on to say. “I wasn’t campaigning for this job.
“Jeff kind of asked me the other day, ‘Would you ever think of coaching?'” No, I said. I was pleased with my strategy and the discussions I was having with Daryl and Kenny. [The coaching position] sort of happened [Saturday] afternoon. I informed my wife. It came as quite a surprise to her.”
