Marc Crawford fired

From Rich Hammond of the L.A. Daily News:

“We appreciate Marc’s commitment the two seasons he has been here,” said Lombardi. “However, we believe that in evaluating where we are at and, more importantly, where we are going as an organization, we feel this coaching change was the right decision to make. We wish Marc the best in his future endeavors.”

See Hammond’s entry here.

This move came out of nowhere; seeing as most teams relieve their coaches of their duties immediately after the regular season has ended. That being said, the move is not that much of a surprise. Even though the Kings of 2008 were young, they had a lot more talent than their record indicated. Fair or not, that is generally a reflection of the coach.

With Crawford gone, this job should be coveted by a lot of coaches around hockey. The team has loads of young talent, the #2 overall pick in this month’s entry draft and is looking to make a move up the standings. Not to mention the chance to revitalize hockey in California.