CHICAGO, Ill. – The Chicago Wolves on Monday fired head coach Don Granato and assistant Jason Christie. General Manager Wendell Young, who served as an assistant to Granato last season before moving up, will run the team’s practices with senior advisor/director of hockey operations Gene Ubriaco until a replacement is named. Ubriaco was the team’s first head coach in franchise history. From a team press release, Young stated, “I’d like to thank Don and Jason for their time with the team. I know they put their heart and soul into this team, but after missing the playoffs last season and starting 1-5-0-0, we can’t wait any longer. The team wasn’t moving in the right direction quickly enough.” Granato posted a 39-42-3-2 record with the Wolves. Expectations for the Wolves were high this season, as captain Jason Krog returned to the team after leading them to the Calder Cup in 2008. However, Krog, a former league scoring champion, hasn’t hit the back of the net in the six games. He showed his frustration when he took a 10-minute misconduct call in Rockford as he took out the glass while heading to the bench. No word as who will be behind the Chicago bench when the team plays their next game at home against the Abbotsford Heat, who are making their first appearance at the Allstate Arena. Former Chicago Blackhawk and Detroit Red Wing defensemen Chris Chelios is working out with the team and is close to signing. The 47-year old blueliner still has aspirations to play in the NHL and hopes that a team will pick him up later in the season. The Wolves also signed NHL veteran goaltender Manny Legace to a professional tryout contract. Legace has played 337 games in the NHL with 177 wins with 23 of those as shutouts. Contact the author at matt.chin@prohockeynews.com
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