Best of luck to Knoblauch. Not the right coach for this team, but he was a big part of two fun playoff runs, and he seems to be a great guy by all accounts. Hope he finds success elsewhere.
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Oilers fans react to Kris Knoblauch firing: ‘The scapegoat… go figure’
Photo credit: Jim Rassol-USA TODAY Sports
The worst-kept secret in hockey finally came to light this morning as the Edmonton Oilers announced they have relieved Kris Knoblauch of his duties as head coach. The team also announced that Mark Stuart has been let go.
Fans of the Oilers and observers from around the hockey world were eager to learn the news after it was leaked earlier this week that the Oilers were seeking a new head coach. Once the nail was driven into the coffin and the announcement was made, many took to social media to share their opinions as they reacted to the news.
If a coach needs a new defensive coach after he had full control of assistant hires then it means that coach was never good enough. – CaptainNuge 1 via XThe Edmonton Oilers tried to replace Kris Knoblauch with Bruce Cassidy while Knoblauch was still under contract. I’ve never seen that before. Classless organization. – Berezin_goal via XThe scapegoat for the Oilers, go figure. He’s a great coach, but since people higher up in that organization don’t wanna take responsibility for giving him a bad team, this is what happens. Hope Kris finds a better job than that circus. – Zach_ferny via XYep, it’s Knoblauch’s fault that the GM put stock in Tristan Jarry and extending Trent Fredric. Bowman should be the one to fall on the sword. – ColonelFancy via Xlol I’m sure that this team’s problem is his fault. 2 finals and this is how he gets repaid. Bowman is the one building the shit team. – Caseyskater via XBuddy got them to the Stanley Cup finals two years in a row. One first-round loss and he’s out, crazy. Personally, I would look at the moves their GM made. Significantly worse roster this year IMO. – UnionAndBlue via XMakes absolutely no sense. This guy was the best coach the Oilers had in years, and they tossed him out like yesterday’s trash. – LoftSportsUsa via X
A large chunk of the fanbase feels this firing falls on GM Stan Bowman, the man who constructed this roster with a little bit of influence from Jeff Jackson. If anything, there’ve been more calls to see those two fired than to see Knoblauch fired. There were those who felt Kris Knoblauch had run his course with the Oilers and that there was a legitimate case for his dismissal, given how he deployed the team throughout the 25/26 season.
Bowman should have been first in my opinion. – Hacknwack_pajot via InstagramI won’t support the Oilers anymore if they don’t get rid of Bowman, the obvious problem. – Lanny_niekamp via InstagramBefore ppl will say oh, he led the team to two back-to-back finals, it was evident he was very outcoached in the most recent final, and was severely outcoached in the matchup against the Ducks (and in both finals runs, McDavid went supernova and did a lot to carry the team). For a while, Knobby seemed to be the choice, but it became clearer and clearer that he wasn’t, and this was evident in how the players played. His style is suited more for a young team that needs his calmness and methodical approach, which is why earlier on in his tenure, this would pay dividends (Broberg, Holloway are key examples of this and still did with Savoie this season as well, and Pod). One of the cases where, in the end, it just didn’t work out perfectly, unfortunately. Wish Knob all the best for what he has done, but moving on was in the best interest of this team. – Mazakinator via InstagramThank you for everything Knoblauch. I’m sorry that Stan Bowman is a complete moron and has no clue how to fix a team and thought you were the problem when you truly weren’t. Best of luck on your future endeavors. – Pokerchamps88 via InstagramThis guy should’ve been more vocal. However Jackson and Bowman have maybe done the most damage so far. Coaching carousel continues. 5 in 10 years now. – Zac Sadoway via InstagramThe fact that Nuge has played 1031 games with the Oilers and has had 10 different coaches, tells you all you need to know about the Oilers organization. – Pique CJ via FacebookDysfunctional organization. Always has been. – Duane Wallace via FacebookLol, what a joke! Gm makes all the bad moves and single handedly ruins this team and he doesn’t get fired. – Rory Sundberg via FacebookThis whole debacle represents the entire season…even the management couldn’t even fire Knoblauch properly… What a joke. – Mike Mintenko via Facebook
This whole situation has been an ugly look for the Edmonton Oilers organization. Very rarely do you hear of a team wanting to interview a head coach while they already have one employed. The report that came out earlier this week from Frank Seravalli forced their hand, probably sooner than they’d prefer.
While fans want Bowman and company gone, there’s been very little chatter from insiders that their jobs are on the line. Only TSN’s Ryan Rishaug has mentioned that their employment with the club is in jeopardy, mentioning in a tweet on Thursday morning, “Have to think Bowman and Jackson are very much on the cock as well.”
Now, fans will have to wait and see who becomes the head coach of the Edmonton Oilers. Bob Stauffer believes the next bench boss will be someone with experience, but didn’t name anyone.
My belief is that the Edmonton Oilers will target an Experienced Head Coach with Gravitas who has had a history of having structure and process in his team’s game…and has won before! – Bob Stauffer
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