Blues fire Davis Payne; Hire Ken Hitchcock

[NJDevils17]

Per Blues' Twitter

The Blues have relieved Davis Payne as head coach and hired Ken Hitchcock. More details coming to http://stlouisblues.com soon.

[Gunslinger]

Beat me too it. Does this mean Scott Arniel can breath a little easier now in Columbus or is he still cooked?

[Killah_punk]

Originally Posted by Gunslinger

Beat me too it. Does this mean Scott Arniel can breath a little easier now in Columbus or is he still cooked?

He's next!

[canuckfan]

Originally Posted by Killah_punk

He's next!

Yeah, I'm thinking he might have another week left - either that, or seeing the first coach fired may only quicken Howson's decision to make a change. Coaching changes sometimes happen in bunches...all you need is one to get the ball rolling.

I know St. Louis wasn't off to a great start, but they're either right at or just above .500 - I'm kinda surprised he wasn't given more time with this group this season - are Blues fans shocked? Could they see this coming - or did the Blues just want to get to Hitchcock first, before the BJs did?

Either way - Hitchcock is a boring ass coach and its never a good thing when this guy is employed in the NHL somewhere....

[thepolishkid88]

This was just stunning when I saw it break on Twitter. I thought Payne was doing well, but Hitchcock's style should fit that roster better. The Blues have an enormous amount of pressure on them right now, and it might even be as big as the Leafs at this point.

As far as Colombus, I expect them to clean house. At least in the front office. Nash being moved may happen, but that to me seems like a pipe dream, because Nash has a NTC and NMC.

Hope things work out for both teams though.

[Humpzilla]

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzz

[bruiser11]

Davis Payne is in pain. Nice to know Hitchcock gets a chance again.

[Ciccarelli]

I think the Blues have the players to do well with a coach like Hitchcock. They aren't overly skilled and might play a simple game. It could work out well for them, but on the other side Hitchcock is a coach that loves his teams to be boring and maybe just maybe his time has gone and he and his game plans are too antiquated for today's game.

[acdcrocksno1]

Will he dress a tough team?

[Ciccarelli]

Originally Posted by acdcrocksno1

Will he dress a tough team?

Hitchcock isn't really a guy that dresses a HW. He prefers to roll 4 lines. So I would say Reaves will not see a lot of ice-time, but we can hope for Crombeen at least.

[bustoff]

Originally Posted by Ciccarelli

Hitchcock isn't really a guy that dresses a HW. He prefers to roll 4 lines. So I would say Reaves will not see a lot of ice-time, but we can hope for Crombeen at least.

For that reason I kind of hate seeing him take over, but with Payne, the Blues weren't going to do much of anything. Maybe this fat bastard can light a fire under the Blues ass..........

[Ciccarelli]

Originally Posted by bustoff

For that reason I kind of hate seeing him take over, but with Payne, the Blues weren't going to do much of anything. Maybe this fat bastard can light a fire under the Blues ass..........

Well, as long as the tougher players fullfill the things Hitchcocks wants from his players he is letting them play too. He for example had no problem playing Boll in Columbus and he also played Brashear in Philly.
But if Hitchcock thinks the player might be a liability in some way he will not play him.
Don't know how good Reaves is as a player.

I would say Hitchcock might do well with this Blues team, because the Blues don't have overly skilled players that need to get the freedom in the offensive zone to flourish. The Blues have a lot of hard working, gritty players that could be very successfull with the way Hitchcock wants his teams to play. Besides that they have the veteran leaders (Arnott, Langenbrunner, Jackman) that Hitchcock asks to have on his teams.

[DARCY T]

hitchcock and langenbrunner back together...i like this move for blues.i think hitchcock will fit well with them.hitchcock likes tough players who can also play.but he used to dress players like bill huard,brent severyn or patrick cote too a couple times in dallas
i really like blues roster and with addition of hitch i think i might watch them closely this season.good luck

[bustoff]

I stand corrected. The Blues have bought into Hitch's style of play and are one of the hottest teams in the NHL. What impresses me most is that he's doing it even when we have key players out with injuries. Last year at this time, the Blues were already practically out of the playoffs.

[DARCY T]

im glad to see hiring hitchcock's been working well so far for blues.they are on of the best teams right now and they dress tough players as well.i hope they will win the cup if my team won't