Just talked to Marc Crawford and he confirmed what he said on the Fan 590 Monday _ that Stu Barnes will stay on as an assistant coach and that Andy Moog will remain the goalie consultant.
Barnes retired as a player after the 2007-08 season, and went through a lot of learning in his first year as an assistant coach last year. While Crawford said they still are in the development stages of forming the coaching staff, my guess is Barnes moves from the pressbox (where he was the eye in the sky) down to the bench.
I think the Stars will go from a four-man coaching staff to a three-man coaching staff, so we'll see if Moog is a candidate to return to the eye in the sky position.
Crawford is working out of his home in Vancouver and talked to Barnes yesterday in Seattle (Barnes' summer home) and is supposed to talk to Moog (who summer in Penticton, B.C.) Wednesday in Vancouver, so there still is some planning to do.
Crawford said he will not be hiring longtime friend Mike Johnston, who served as his assistant coach in both Vancouver and Los Angeles, running the defenses there. Johnston took the job as the head coach and GM of the Portland WinterHawks last season, and will continue in the capacity.
No tips on who will run the defense for the Stars next season, but that is a huge hire for this team. _Mike Heika
Comments