Sean Burke to interview for management spots outside Coyotes
The Coyotes may lose one of the most vital parts of their organization this summer, and it’s not just Shane Doan.
According to Fox Sports Arizona, goaltending coach Sean Burke has been given permission by the Coyotes to explore management roles with other teams. This comes in spite of the fact that Burke, one of the NHL's premier goaltending whisperers, has wanted to stay with Arizona in a management position oh … since he has been there as a coach in 2009.
From Craig Morgan of Fox Sports Arizona:
Sean Burke has wanted a significant management role since he joined the Coyotes organization in 2009 as its goaltending coach. He may get that opportunity somewhere else this offseason.
Coyotes GM Don Maloney recently granted Burke permission to talk to other clubs about management positions, Burke confirmed on Monday. Burke said he already spoke to seven or eight teams and plans to talk to a few more.
"I haven't wanted to say much about it and I haven't gone down the path to doing interviews yet," Burke said. "I really thought that was something that should wait until the season is over."
Burke, who per the story, has talked with seven or eight teams, has been an instrumental part in Arizona’s success, turning Mike Smith from a nobody into an NHL starter, and helping Devan Dubnyk realize his potential this year – albeit with another team after a trade. He is known as one of the premier coaches for taller goaltenders, since Burke himself is 6-foot-4.
Also, Ilya Bryzgalov’s best two seasons with the Coyotes in 2009-10 and 2010-11 both came with Burke as his goaltending whisperer. Bryzgalov, a Vezina Trophy finalist in 2010, then parlayed that success into a humangous, big contract with Philadelphia.
Randomly ... he has talked with seven or eight teams already? Good to know the offseason has started for some groups.
Not a lot of goaltending coaches jump into management roles. Many generally stay in their craft. But it would be smart of a team to give Burke a shot. Again from Fox Sports.
"I've really enjoyed the coaching and it has been rewarding, but I never went into this to coach. I wanted to manage from the moment I retired," he said. "Coaching is good because it gives you an additional avenue of experience, being in that dressing room every day, but when you stay in that role too long, it becomes more difficult to get where you want to go.
He’s smart, gets hockey, has taken his lumps as a coach and most importantly would provide a tremendous emergency backup in case a starter got hurt.
- - - - - - -
Josh Cooper is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @joshuacooper
MORE FROM YAHOO HOCKEY
