Sports
Former Gulls Coach Eakins Fired By Anaheim Ducks After Team Compiles NHL's Worst Record
Coach Dallas Eakins said that he "will be forever grateful for my eight years in the Ducks organization."
April 16, 2023
The Anaheim Ducks have announced the firing of coach Dallas Eakins, after the team completed the season with the NHL’s worst record.
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The Ducks had losing records in each of Eakins’ four seasons as coach, after he was elevated to the club from the team’s minor-league affiliate, the San Diego Gulls.
Under Eakins, the Ducks went 101-147-44, dating back to 2019. That includes a 23-47-12 record this season, which they concluded Thursday with a 5-3 setback to the Los Angeles Kings. The loss assured them of the league’s worst record.
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“This was a very difficult decision, one that comes after careful and considerable deliberation,” Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek said in a statement, adding “that a fresh perspective and new voice will be beneficial for the team.”
“Dallas has handled himself with class and character through a difficult season, and we wish him the best in the future,” Verbeek concluded.
Eakins said in a statement he released on Twitter that he “will be forever grateful for my eight years in the Ducks organization.”
“From jump-starting San Diego to dealing with COVID to a full-on rebuild was an inspiring and rewarding challenge,” Eakins, 56, said. “Every staff member and player made me a better coach, but more importantly, a better person.”
Eakins was hired as the Ducks’ coach in June 2019, by former general manager Bob Murray, after coaching the Gulls, of the American Hockey League for four seasons.
The stint in Anaheim was Eakins’ second as an NHL coach. He led the Edmonton Oilers to a 36-63-14 record from the start of the 2013-14 season until being fired 31 games into the 2014-15 season after they got off to a 7-19-5 start.
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