No matter what people or general managers want, National Hockey League coaches are not in the player-development business. They are in the winning-games business. But right now, Willie Desjardins is failing at both.
On Saturday, with a players’ bench as short as a bus stop’s, the Vancouver Canucks blew another third-period lead and lost 3-2 in overtime to the Detroit Red Wings, who were lucky to be in the game at all before they scored twice in 2 ½ minutes early in the third period.
Desjardins’ Canuck lost only four games all of last season when taking a lead into the third period.