The Anaheim Ducks fired head coach Greg Cronin of Arlington, Massachusetts on Saturday according to The Hockey News. He had spent the last two seasons as Anaheim’s bench boss. Cronin was one of two American National Hockey League coaches to be fired on Saturday. The other one was Peter Laviolette of Franklin, Massachusetts, who lost his job as the head coach of the New York Rangers.
Missed the playoffs
The Ducks were sixth in the Pacific Division. They had a record of 35 wins, 37 regulation losses and 10 losses in extra time for 80 points. They were 16 points back of the St. Louis Blues for a playoff spot.
Lost his job despite improvement
There is no questionable doubt that the Ducks showed steady signs of improvement from last season. A year ago, the Ducks had a record of 27 wins, 50 regular season losses and five losses in extra time for 59 points. The Ducks had a 21 point improvement in the 2024-25 season, from the 2023-24 season. The improvement was not enough for Cronin to keep his job.
The 21 point improvement was the second largest improvement from last season to this season in the entire NHL. The biggest improvement came from the Columbus Blue Jackets, who went from 66 points to 89 points, as they had a 23 point improvement. But, like the Ducks, the Blue Jackets did not make the Stanley Cup Playoffs, as they were two points back of the Montreal Canadiens and New Jersey Devils.
Trouba trade not enough
There was hope by some within the Ducks organization by acquiring defenseman Jacob Trouba in a trade with the New York Rangers on December 6, that the veteran blueliner would get the Ducks to the playoffs. However, he had minimal impact as he only had eight points in 53 games, was a -5 and had 44 more giveaways (67) than takeaways (23).
Cronin’s overall record with the Ducks
Cronin had a record of 62 wins, 87 regulation losses and 15 losses in extra time.
