As the NHL's Olympic break nears, there's mounting pressure on staff with the Vancouver Canucks, Los Angeles Kings and Columbus Blue Jackets to find the right path forward.
As the NHL speeds toward its Olympic break, the pressure on many league figures is ramping up to significant levels.
Whether it's players, coaches or GMs, there's no shortage of NHL figures who find themselves on an increasingly hot seat.
Last week, our NHL Hot Seat Radar focused on Winnipeg Jets coach Scott Arniel, Nashville Predators bench boss Andrew Brunette and New Jersey Devils coach Sheldon Keefe. And this week, we're focusing on two GMs and one coach who are dealing with increased pressure in one way or another.
Although none of them are in danger of being fired imminently, there's no question they're all dealing with a higher degree of pressure than at this time last week.
Warming Up: Patrik Allvin, GM, Vancouver Canucks
As the season has unfolded, the Canucks have hit rock bottom in the standings with a 17-28-5 record. They're in last place by seven points, so that should tell you all you need to know about Vancouver completely cratering this year. Those struggles are putting the focus squarely on Allvin.
Canucks president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford has made it clear that Vancouver is in the early stages of a rebuild. That meant trading star defenseman Quinn Hughes to the Minnesota Wild, then sending rugged winger Kiefer Sherwood to the San Jose Sharks on Monday. But there are many more Vancouver veterans on the trading block – or at least who should be.
That list starts with star center Elias Pettersson, and it also includes wingers Evander Kane and Jake DeBrusk. But what about star goalie Thatcher Demko? Does he want to be part of a Canucks team that will be taking backward steps before they're ready to contend for a Stanley Cup playoff spot again? What about Brock Boeser and Conor Garland, who, like Demko, signed lengthy contract extensions last summer?
The pressure in Vancouver is now squarely on Allvin to make moves that will help in the long term but also stabilize them right now.
Warming Up: Jim Hiller, Coach, Los Angeles Kings
If you said before the season that the Kings would be lower than the Sharks and Anaheim Ducks in the standings, it would've been tough to believe you.
But that's where Los Angeles sits right now. They're tied with the Sharks in points but sit below them due to a tiebreaker, and they're two points behind the Ducks, which sit third in the Pacific Division.
Just the fact that the Kings are in this tight situation instead of separating themselves in the top three of the division is on Hiller, their coach, and first-year Kings GM Ken Holland. But given that Holland didn't hire Hiller, and given that most GMs want to install their own choice as coach sooner or later, the clock is clearly ticking on Hiller's stint.
The Kings are averaging the fourth-fewest goals-for per game, at 2.57. Their power play is tied for the third-worst, at 15.5 percent efficiency. But they have enough high-end talent that should propel them to better numbers than that.
Holland has already started to make changes to his lineup, trading veteran center Phillip Danault to the Montreal Canadiens. But if the Kings don't improve in the Pacific Division standings soon, Holland may turn his attention to Hiller. And that would spell the end for Hiller after about two years running things in L.A.
There are a number of coaching options out there right now, including former Dallas Stars coach Peter DeBoer and former Edmonton Oilers coach Jay Woodcroft. Or Holland could go with a less-experienced coach. But the longer the Kings' woes continue, the more likely it is that Hiller's time as Los Angeles' coach is coming to an end.
Warming Up: Don Waddell, GM, Columbus Blue Jackets
Once again, the Blue Jackets are falling short of expectations – and after firing coach Dean Evason on Jan. 12, Columbus is trying desperately to salvage their season.
The good news in that regard is that the Jackets are seven points behind the Boston Bruins for the second wild-card spot. The bad news is that there are seven teams standing in their way of a post-season spot.
Waddell is in his second season as Blue Jackets GM, and he's already brought in Rick Bowness as the new coach.
But there are a slew of questions about this Columbus team, including what Waddell does with pending UFAs Boone Jenner, Mason Marchment and Charlie Coyle.
Waddell also needs to figure out the future of goalie Elvis Merzlikins, who is no longer a starting netminder at the NHL level, but has another season left at a whopping $5.4 million per year. Is a buyout in store for Merzlikins? That seems to be the most likely solution, but Waddell would be a certified genius if he could find a taker for Merzlikins in a trade.
Regardless, the Blue Jackets have $20.8 million in salary cap space, and Waddell could try to use the funds available to him to add pieces that can help them this season and in the long haul. He won't be fired, but he has something to prove in Columbus.
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