Ottawa was Hartsburg’s number one choice

From Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun:

The Senators hired Hartsburg just a day after reports surfaced DeBoer was the frontrunner. But sources say DeBoer expressed concern in his interview with Murray about coaching in a Canadian market. There was also a strong belief DeBoer, who was hired by the Panthers yesterday, was using the Seantors as leverage to get a better deal elsewhere.

Hartsburg never winced about coming to the Senators. Sources say he held talks with the Thrashers about their opening, but he only wanted the Ottawa job.

Read the entire article here.

Hartsburg is great hire for the Senators. He is a tough-minded coach, who stresses accountability. That is precisely what this Senators team needs at this point in time. Additionally, he has proven he is capable of handling the media and presurre that comes along with coaching in Canada. As he has coached in the CHL and also led the Canadian Junior team to back-to-back gold medals at the World Junior Hockey Championship. His past NHL experience shouldn’t hurt either.

On a team that seemed like it was hardly trying last season, Hartsburg should whip this crew into shape. He has some Darryl Sutter in him, so we’ll just have to wait and see how some of the Senators react to his tough-love approach.