Chances for Travis Green as Devils Head Coach Seem Genuine, Is it Right?

New Jersey Devils General Manager Tom Fitzgerald explained he wants his head coach to be named by the NHL Draft on June 28th.

Of course, interim head coach Travis Green explained he wants the job. It’s rare, if ever, that someone in his position wouldn’t. Not just as an interim head coach of any team.

But as interim head coach of the New Jersey Devils.

Say what you will about how this season went, but there is a TON of potential with the Devils’ roster.

The Devils already got a taste of winning last season. Yet, they have plenty of needs to address this summer to get back there, starting behind the bench.

Green explained that he and GM Tom Fitzgerald have had brief conversations and will continue talking while pleading his case that he’s the right fit.

“[Fitzgerald] and I have talked briefly. We’ll talk more in the upcoming weeks,” Green explained. “Do I want to be the head coach of this team? 100%. There’s a lot of reasons why. One of them being the team is good, and I want to win. There’s certain parts of coaching that I believe in. Collaboration is a big part of it. I know, when you talk about collaboration, that’s seeing eye to eye with people throughout your organization and I think [Fitzgerald] and I see the game very similar.

“I like what they’re trying to do with the group and where they want to go. But it’s also collaborating throughout your organization, whether it’s analytics or athletic training. And I think that’s a huge part of winning. Communication is a big, big part of what I believe in with coaching. And having accountability. I think these are all things that go into winning organizations. [Fitzgerald] and I will talk more over the upcoming weeks. We’ll see where it ends up.”

Green spoke before Fitzgerald on Thursday. However, everything he said aligns with what Fitzgerald later explained he’s looking for in a head coach.

He either listened really well when Fitzgerald spoke in his interim status as head coach, or he and the Devils GM are on the same page.

“I want to take my time with this. But I have specific areas that I want to check boxes that I want to be checked,” Fitzgerald said. “One, they have to be an excellent, excellent communicator. Negative feedback, positive feedback, but feedback, constant feedback. The players crave it, they want it. Communicating upwards, communicating with management, being able to communicate with our managing partners, and feeling comfortable in that situation. Lots of feedback, you know, like I said, positive and negative. So communication is a big one.

“Someone who’s collaborative, who wants to collaborate with all different areas of the organization, in particular me, someone who understands where I think the team needs to get to and how do we do that? Players that we will need, we work together. I’m not a dictator, I work with everybody. I think I’m very collaborative with information and use all that information to try to make the best decisions I possibly can as the manager. Someone who, when I talk about collaboration, is using the things that are at our fingertips, analytics for decisions and personnel or strategy on how we want to play.”

Fitzgerald’s biggest point of emphasis, however, is accountability. It wasn’t said outright, but it sounds like some players weren’t being held accountable before.

“Lastly, accountability. A coach who is going to keep every player, not just a handful of guys accountable. If you don’t have accountability, you really don’t have the building blocks to a championship-caliber team you want to get to in my opinion. And with that being said, we need players who understand accountability and want to be held accountable and should be able to look in the mirror and say, ‘You’re right. You’re right, I gotta be better. And this isn’t good enough.’ And that may be just not enough time in the weight room. You know, just checking the box here and just doing it versus, you get in there because that is as important as the face-offs as an example. So yeah, those in particular areas are what I’m looking for. And I think this organization deserves that.”

Again, Green’s words align well with Fitzgerald’s.

“When you talk about accountability, that’s really being there for each other every day and [being] dependable that you’re gonna do the right thing to win,” Green explained. And as a coach to have accountability in your room, I believe you have to have open dialogue, open communication, trust, and build a relationship. And not only do the players then accept accountability, they want it and they understand it when players are held accountable.”

Here’s the thing.

Although this all sounds well and good, accountability — which certainly seems to be the biggest point of emphasis by Fitzgerald –remains in question.

When Green took over as interim head coach in February following the departure of Lindy Ruff, the 53-year-old’s message then didn’t scream accountability.

“I’m demanding but I’m fair and I do believe in communication and honesty,” Green stated in March when he took over for Ruff. “Are you asking me if I’m going to sit out a player or two? Yeah I am, that’s part of the game. There’s guys that sit out every night. But there are certain guys I’m never gonna sit out. That’s reality in the NHL and I wouldn’t do that. But will some guys be surprised once in a while? Maybe. But, I hope not. There are certain ways to get players to play well and that’s the last resort for me is sitting a guy out.”

Saying certain players will never sit out is the opposite of holding everyone accountable if necessary.

That’s not to say that if Green should be named the official head coach he should go ahead and sit someone like Jack Hughes or Timo Meier on opening night to prove a point.

However, no one in the Devils’ locker room, especially the young impressionable players, should be made to believe they’re untouchable.

Perhaps this is an extreme example, but if John Tortorella can bench the Philadelphia Flyers’ captain, Sean Couturier, there’s no reason why anyone on the Devils can’t be held accountable if necessary.

So, here’s what needs to happen.

When Green and Fitzgerald sit down to talk about the future, the very quote in which Green said certain guys are “never gonna sit out” should be discussed at length.

Only then should a decision be made on whether or not Green is the right man for the job.

Lastly, Green checks a lot of boxes. He’s intelligent, well-spoken, and seemingly is always trying to make the most of a teachable moment. However, it’s fair to wonder if Green has enough fire in him.

We’ve seen Green lead with emotion exactly once, in the Devils’ emotional tilt on April 3rd against the New York Rangers. However, his history with the Vancouver Canucks plus his short tenure with the Devils doesn’t exactly paint a fiery picture.

Sometimes, you need a little passion behind the bench and in the locker room.