With the report cards for Minnesota Wild players finished, it’s time to jump to the one in charge of things behind the bench, and that’s head coach Dean Evason. It was an up-and-down season for Evason but he pulled things together enough to make a playoff appearance. But unfortunately, that’s all it was, an appearance.
Many were calling for Evason’s job after the postseason ended and understandably so, it was a very disappointing finish. However, he’s only in his fourth season as a head coach so it’s still early in his career to completely give up on him just yet. If he doesn’t step up after this coming season, he’ll be on the hot seat once again and it may not end in his favor. We’ll take a look at this past season and determine a grade for his choices throughout the season.
Evason’s Rollercoaster Regular Season
The Wild started out the season very rocky and things didn’t look good. They dropped their first game to the New York Rangers at home 7-3 but no one worried too much since it was the opening of the season. A couple of days later they faced the Los Angeles Kings looking to redeem themselves and while they proved they were capable of a comeback, they fell short 7-6.
Again, it was early in the season, and they had to shake off the rust. But when they fell for a third straight game with at least six goals scored against them, it was time to wonder a little. That’s when Evason and his team found a way to win with a close overtime win against the Vancouver Canucks. Then they started to get back to the normal ups and downs of a season with some wins and losses sprinkled in.
Evason proved he was able to weather a rough start and get his team back on track only for it to happen again in small streaks through January and February. They found their way back to winning just in time to snag a spot in the postseason. Every coach goes through their fair share of scrutiny in a season and Evason definitely had his. From not playing Marco Rossi enough, which goaltender to use, and many other lineup scenarios, he made it through the season and into the playoffs.
Evason’s Crash & Burn Postseason
The Wild made it six games into the playoffs before being sent home by the Dallas Stars and not only did they get outplayed, they basically stood still at times. The biggest thing wrong with the Wild during the playoffs other than their lack of scoring, defense, special teams, and energy was they waited too long to shake things up.
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When things aren’t working during the regular season it’s okay to wait a bit and see if it plays out, but in the postseason there is no time to waste. Evason waited too long to change things and he didn’t do anything to spark some energy in his lineup. The Wild were very flat and a lot of times change is exactly what was needed but it wasn’t done.
Other than the lack of change, there wasn’t much else Evason could do. While he does make the decisions, the players have to follow them and if they don’t, that’s not always the coach’s fault. Players have to step up and do what needs to be done along with the coach’s instructions. The struggle during the postseason will affect his grade and that’s where we’ll head to next.
Evason’s Grade Report
Now it’s the hard part of this report, determining an actual grade but without on-ice performance to look at. Evason’s regular season wasn’t horrible and actually turned out decent with a few bumps here and there like every coach and team has. There were a few things that could’ve been changed up like maybe playing Rossi a bit more and separating Kirill Kaprizov and Mats Zuccarello when they were having trouble with chemistry, but nothing that caused huge failures.
Related: DeBoer & Evason Beef A Splendid Subplot of Wild vs Stars Series
Overall his grade for the season is a B+, he got his team to the postseason and they had their second straight season with over 100 points. He kept his composure and tried to do what needed to be done. However, the postseason is where things got ugly and he didn’t make the changes that needed to happen. His grade for the postseason is going to sound quite harsh but it’s a D+ because while he’s still a young coach, there is accountability and his team struggled greatly.
His grade for the entire season is a C+ which is fair, as he had a decent regular season. But what matters in the NHL is a Stanley Cup and you can’t do that with a first round playoff exit. However, he has a lot of room to grow and the potential to prove it. It’ll be interesting to see if he can make changes this next season to get results and keep his job.
