Washington gives Cassidy the ax

ODENTON, Md. (AP) – The daring move ultimately failed for the Washington Capitals.

The team pulled Bruce Cassidy from the minor leagues 18 months ago, hoping the bright and brash coach with no NHL bench experience could handle the likes of Jaromir Jagr.

But with the Capitals tied for last place in the NHL, Cassidy was fired Wednesday.

“We are in this spiral this season, and I couldn’t sit back any longer,” general manager George McPhee said. “We still have every intention of making the playoffs. Ten games under .500 this time of year is dangerous. We can’t lose any more ground.”

Assistant coach Glen Hanlon will replace Cassidy, and he immediately promised a patient approach that appears a stark contrast from the in-your-face style that hindered Cassidy’s adjustment to the big leagues.

“We’re not going to make a lot of system changes, but I think we can make some changes overnight in how we approach the game and how we treat ourselves,” Hanlon said.

Hanlon joined the staff last season after spending three seasons as coach of the Portland Pirates, Washington’s AHL affiliate.

“It’s not that the previous coaches tried to make things miserable here,” Hanlon said. “It’s just that we’ve lost some hockey games, and we haven’t been able to deal with it.”

The Capitals are 8-18-1-1 with 18 standings points, tied with Pittsburgh for fewest in the NHL despite one of the highest payrolls in the league. Washington has struggled with an inexperienced defense and has had trouble scoring despite a lineup that includes Jagr, Peter Bondra and Robert Lang.

Cassidy, 47-47-9-7 overall with Washington, replaced Ron Wilson in June 2002 in a hiring gamble by McPhee. Cassidy had no NHL coaching experience, and the best line on his resume was that he won an AHL coach of the year award with Grand Rapids.

Cassidy arrived to find his minor league coaching style didn’t always mesh with the NHL’s highly paid players. The Capitals made the playoffs last season, but were eliminated in the first round by Tampa Bay.

This season, Cassidy has clashed with players, but he also had to deal with a severe drain of talent.

The money-losing Capitals, looking to trim payroll, no longer have defensemen Calle Johansson (retired) and Ken Klee (departed via free agency). Captain Steve Konowalchuk was traded to Colorado early in the season.

There have been persistent rumors of discontent in the locker room, and McPhee told the players Wednesday he was unhappy that such stories had been made public. Still, he felt a change in coaching approach was needed.

“Glen and Butch have different types of systems they like to play and a different way of approaching the game, and different ways of relating to the players,” McPhee said. “Neither one of them is good or bad, they’re just different.”

McPhee said he doesn’t regret hiring Cassidy, given the team’s success last season. But he also put the onus on himself if the switch to Hanlon doesn’t pan out.

“Did I provide Butch with enough support and enough players to get the job done?” McPhee said. “If Glen can’t do this either, then maybe it’s my fault.”

Hanlon was 110-94-29-7 with the Pirates, leading the team to two playoff appearances. Like Cassidy, he also won an AHL coach of the year award, in 1999-00. Hanlon was also on the coaching staff with Vancouver for eight seasons.

His first game as head coach will be Thursday night at home against Boston.

AP-ES-12-10-03 1852EST