Tippett fired as coach of Oilers, replaced by Woodcroft

The 60-year-old was replaced by Jay Woodcroft, coach of the Oilers’ American Hockey League affiliate in Bakersfield.

Edmonton associate coach Jim Playfair was also fired.

Tippett was 95-62-14 in three seasons with the Oilers and 1-7 in the Stanley Cup Playoffs after he was hired to replace Ken Hitchcock on May 28, 2019. Edmonton has been eliminated in the first round of the postseason the past two seasons, including a four-game sweep by the Winnipeg Jets last season.

The Oilers began the season 16-5-0 but are 7-13-3 since and fifth in the Pacific Division.

Ken Holland, who was named Oilers GM prior to the 2019-20 season, had never changed a coach in-season during a managerial career that started with Detroit Red Wings in 1997.

“I don’t believe in it, I guess, but I also understand there are times when possibly it needs to be done or it should be done,” Holland said Jan 11, when Edmonton was in the middle of an 0-5-2 skid. “We’re going to start to win. I believe in the coach. I believe in the team. I believe in the leadership of the team. I believe in their determination.”

Edmonton has lost home games to the Vegas Golden Knights and Chicago Blackhawks since the All-Star break, being outscored 8-1, after going 5-0-1 in their previous six games. Connor McDavid said at the 2022 Honda NHL All-Star Weekend in Las Vegas he felt the Oilers were coming out of a funk when they lost 13 of 15 (2-11-2) from Dec. 3-Jan. 20, which caused them to fall from first in the NHL in points percentage (.762, 16-5-0) to sixth in the Pacific Division (.528).

“I think so, yeah,” McDavid said Feb. 4. “I just feel like in the room everyone has their confidence back, everyone has got their mojo back. It’s a good feeling in the room right now.”

Woodcroft, 45, was coach for Bakersfield for the past four seasons. He previously was an Oilers assistant for three seasons (2015-18) and was an assistant with the San Jose Sharks for seven seasons from 2008-15. Woodcroft was on the coaching staff for the Detroit Red Wings for three seasons (2005-08) and won the Stanley Cup in 2008.

Dave Manson, who was an assistant under Woodcroft with Bakersfield, was promoted to the same role with the Oilers.

Tippett is 648-475-134 with 28 ties in 17 NHL seasons with the Oilers, Phoenix/Arizona Coyotes and Dallas Stars.

He is the fifth coach to be fired this season (Dominique Ducharme, Montreal Canadiens, Feb. 9; Alain Vigneault, Philadelphia Flyers, Dec. 6; Travis Green, Vancouver Canucks, Dec. 5; Jeremy Colliton, Chicago Blackhawks, Nov. 6). Paul Maurice resigned as Winnipeg Jets coach on Dec. 17, and Joel Quenneville resigned as Florida Panthers coach on Oct. 28 after being implicated in an independent investigation into the Blackhawks for allegations by former player Kyle Beach of sexual assault by then-video coach Brad Aldrich in 2010.