Abbotsford Heat head coach Jim Playfair termed his team’s failure to make the playoffs “very discouraging.”
“We were able to overcome a lot of adversity this year, in that we were a very young team and had a lot of injuries,” Playfair said, speaking with The News on Monday. “But at the end of the day, I’m very disappointed we weren’t in a position to continue on.
“We’ve got exit meetings with the players (on Tuesday), and then we’re going to go to Calgary with reports and get to work to make sure this never happens again.”
The cause of death, when it comes to the Heat’s season, doesn’t require Sherlock Holmes-level deductive reasoning.
Quite simply, the Heat couldn’t put the puck in the net with enough frequency. Their 186 goals scored was the lowest total in the AHL, and the power play was rated 27th out of 30 teams at 14.5 per cent.
It was morbidly appropriate that Abbotsford's last two games of the regular season were shutout losses – 3-0 to the Lake Erie Monsters on Saturday, and 6-0 to the Toronto Marlies on Sunday.
Given their inability to finish, it’s somewhat remarkable the Heat were alive in the playoff race until the second-last game of the regular season. It’s a tribute to their commitment to playing a gritty, sound defensive game.
Abbotsford’s goals-against total (212) was eighth-best in the AHL, and the penalty kill, after a slow start, was much-improved in the second half and ended up rated 11th overall (83.2 per cent efficiency).
“We gave up the second-fewest shots in the league, and that speaks volumes about the structure our team was able to get to,” Playfair said. “The offensive part of it, I think we were seventh in the league in shots on net. So the finish is something we’re looking to address.”
Improving the finish might require an additional investment by the NHL parent Calgary Flames in proven veteran scorers for the AHL affiliate. The Heat were the youngest team in the league, and that inexperience was glaring at times.
The addition of Ales Kotalik in February certainly helped matters offensively, but the Heat only had him for 25 games.
“That’s something we’ll certainly look at,” Playfair said, speaking of adding proven talent up front. “You look at Oklahoma City and Texas. They’re teams that signed veteran goal-scorers in the off-season, and they’re playoff-bound.”
It figures to be a fascinating off-season for the Heat. The list of free-agents-to-be includes Playfair, whose two-year contract is set to expire.
In the past, the Heat bench boss has stated his focus is on landing an NHL head coaching job, as opposed to an assistant coaching gig.
"There's some things out there," he said, alluding to openings with Ottawa, Minnesota, New Jersey and Florida. "It's a matter of earning the right to have someone talk to you about coaching their team. I think when you watch our team play, my style of coaching has to fit with what the general manager and the owners want to see in their team game.
"That's certainly something I'll be exploring, but I'll also be talking to Calgary about their future plans and what they want to do in Abbotsford in the future."
Among current Heat players, Leland Irving’s future figures to be one of the more interesting summer storylines.
The 23-year-old goalie was undoubtedly the team's MVP – his eight shutouts led the league, and his 30 wins were second-most in the AHL. With current Calgary Flames backup Henrik Karlsson headed to free agency, there's speculation out of Calgary that Irving could be in line for the No. 2 job behind Miikka Kiprusoff.
Playfair, though, believes Irving could still use additional seasoning, citing current NHLers Corey Crawford and Cory Schneider as goalies who have benefitted from extended apprenticeships in the AHL.
Crawford played five full AHL seasons before seizing the starting job with the Chicago Blackhawks this year. Schneider spent three seasons with the Manitoba Moose, making a run to the Calder Cup finals in 2009, before the Vancouver Canucks gave him the backup job behind Roberto Luongo.
"My personal theory is, Leland has to win a playoff round to prove he's a (top) American Hockey League goaltender," Playfair said. "I think that the summer training and the direction of the organization and Leland's ability to win big games is certainly how you earn the right to go to the National Hockey League.
"By having 30 wins and 24 losses in his American League season, to me, it doesn't justify all of a sudden an (NHL) deal. If we were in the playoffs and winning playoff rounds? Different issue."