After another disappointing season in which the team missed the playoffs, the Florida Panthers fired coach Bob Boughner on Sunday morning after two years at the helm.
Florida finished the 2018-19 season 36-32-14 and 13 points out of a postseason berth.
"We made a tough decision today and have relieved Bob Boughner of his duties as head coach," said president of hockey operations and general manager Dale Tallon in a statement.
"We didn't meet expectations this season and share responsibility for that fact. After careful evaluation, we have determined that this is a necessary first step for our young team and we will seek to identify a transformative, experienced head coach with Stanley Cup pedigree to lead our team going forward. We're grateful to Bob, (assistant coach) Paul (McFarland, who also was let go) and their families for their hard work and their dedication to the Panthers organization and we wish them the best of luck in their future endeavors."
According to multiple reports, the Panthers will target three-time Stanley Cup-winning coach Joel Quenneville as Boughner's successor. Quenneville led the Chicago Blackhawks to three titles before being fired in November. Quenneville and Tallon worked together when Tallon was the GM of the Blackhawks.
Hired as the 15th coach in franchise history, the 48-year-old Boughner replaced interim coach Tom Rowe, who led Florida for 61 games during the 2016-17 season, following the firing of Gerard Gallant.
In Boughner's first season, the team started slow, but caught fire after the All-Star break, finishing 25-9-2 in its final 36 games. Florida finished that season with 96 points (44-30-8) _ one shy of a playoff berth.
With the bulk of last season's team returning _ led by its talented nucleus of Aleksander Barkov, Vincent Trocheck and Jonathan Huberdeau, as well as offseason acquisition of Mike Hoffman _ expectations were high for the Panthers.
But once again, Florida stumbled out of the gate. The team went winless in its first four games and ended the first month of the season 2-4-2. Florida won five in a row in November, but then proceeded to lose five of its next six.
The low point came in January when Florida lost seven consecutive games to start 2019, effectively removing the team from playoff contention. It is the 16th year in the past 18 where the Panthers have been sitting out the postseason. Florida has had 12 coaches during that span.
Barkov ended up tallying a club-record 96 points, Huberdeau put up 30 goals and 92 points and Hoffman scored a club-high 36 goals.
Prior to Florida, Boughner spent two seasons as an assistant with the San Jose Sharks. He also coached the Windsor Spitfires of the Ontario Hockey League from 2006-15. He played 10 seasons in the NHL, suiting up as a defenseman in 630 games with Buffalo, Nashville, Pittsburgh, Calgary, Colorado and Carolina.
The Panthers will now search for their fourth coach in the past three years. Gallant spent 2 { seasons coaching the team, accumulating a 96-95-25 record with one playoff appearance. He was fired 22 games into the 2016-17 season after the team started 11-10-1. The next season, he led the expansion franchise Vegas Golden Knights to the Stanley Cup Finals, and has led them to the playoffs again this season.
