Gretzky resigns as Coyotes coach

ORLANDO, FL – The battle over the ownership of the Phoenix Coyotes created its largest casualty Thursday morning in the desert. In a stunning turn of events, Wayne Gretzky, the head coach and director of hockey operations of the Coyotes, announced that he was resigning both posts effective immediately. According to a post on his official web site, “The Great One” said that the struggle between Jim Balsillie and the NHL for the franchise – while leaving him out in the cold – was the rationale for the move. “This was a difficult decision that I’ve thought long and hard about. We all hoped there would be a resolution earlier this month to the Coyotes’ ownership situation but the decision is taking longer than expected,” Gretzky said. “Since both remaining bidders have made it clear that I don’t fit into their future plans, I approached general manager Don Maloney and suggested he begin looking for someone to replace me as coach.” The move comes one day after Balsillie amended his $242.5 million offer to purchase the team by saying that he would keep the team in the Jobbing.com Arena in Glendale for the entire 2009-2010 season. Should he be awarded control of the team, Balsillie still plans to move the franchise to Hamilton, Ontario – a move that the NHL does not want to happen. Gretzky, who became managing partner and a part-owner in 2000, did not indicate whether he would stay on in another capacity with the team. In 2005, he signed a five-year contract to be part-owner, managing partner, alternate governor and coach. He is reported to have been due to receive $8.5 million as the coach this season. In his four seasons behind the bench, Gretzky’s teams posted a 143-161-24 record and failed to make the playoffs all four years. Last year, the Coyotes were fifth in the standings in the Western Conference prior to the All-Star break but finished miserably in the second half to slip to 14th in the conference rankings. Because of the ownership situation and the questions about his contractual status, Gretzky had stayed away from the Coyotes training camp which opened on September 12th. Assistant coach Ulf Samuelsson has been running the team up to this point. Former NHL head coach Dave King was hired to help Samuelsson but suffered a health scare earlier this week, causing the 61-year old King to be hospitalized in a Seattle-area hospital prior to a preseason game. He was released Wednesday morning and rejoined the team in Phoenix. Although the team is not sure what will happen to it off the ice, Gretzky was confident that the on-ice product is progressing well. “The Coyotes scouting staff has put together a great group of young and talented players who are going to improve tremendously over the next few years,” he said. “I’m proud of the team we’ve assembled, the organization with which I’ve been associated and the thousands of dedicated fans who have never wavered in their support of this young team. I’m confident that the best is yet to come for hockey in Phoenix.” Stay with ProHockeyNews.com for updates on this breaking news. Contact the author at don.money@prohockeynews.com