Reports: Jon Cooper to be named Tampa Bay Lightning head coach
Reports from the CBC's Eliotte Friedman and TSN's Darren Dreger both state Syracuse Crunch head coach Jon Cooper is to be named head coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday.
This is breaking news and still developing, we'll have more for you when it becomes available but lets dish on what we know:
Some of Canada and Hockey's most respected reporters are reporting AHL head coach Jon Cooper will be named head coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday. Cooper would be the ninth head coach in team history.
Jon Cooper to be head coach in Tampa, Rob Zettler in AHL Syracuse
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) March 25, 2013
Cooper was originally hired by GM Steve Yzerman and Julian BriseBois in late summer 2010 to oversee Tampa's then-AHL affiliate, the Norfolk Admirals. Cooper's teams in 2010-11 and 2011-12 both made the playoffs, the latter team not only winning the Calder Cup but also going on an epic AHL win streak of 28 games.
As Patti McDonald spoke of earlier this afternoon, the current Lightning roster boasts many players whom Cooper coached this season (as well as during Norfolk's epic run). The knowledge of the Cooper system makes transition much simpler. The question is, how well the Lightning veterans buy into things?
Update: Erik Erlendsson reports that Cooper is likely the guy, official word might come out sometime tonight if not tomorrow. However....
But Cooper will not be behind the bench for Tuesday
— Erik Erlendsson (@erlendssonTBO) March 25, 2013
So starts the Cooper waiting game.
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