from Justin Bourne of The Score,

After a few weeks of the 2015-16 season, teams with new coaches are a combined 24-29-5, with only the Sharks holding down a top-three spot in their division. And that's roughly what you’d expect.

The limitations extend beyond raw materials.

Coaches have to learn about their individual players to know how to best utilize them, and they can’t do that without seeing them play a hearty number of games. Then they have to figure out how the puzzle pieces best fit together, which means a lot of experimentation, which means a lot of failed experiments. They have to figure out the motivations of each individual, they may have to adjust to new opponents, and, often, new players have to learn about other new players.

And then, the hardest part.

They have to teach their players how they want them to play - systems, shift lengths, stick position, physical play, angling, and far, far beyond. And here’s where they really run into problems.

Most players intrinsically have some idea of where to go on the ice. If you left an NHL team with no coach, they’d probably mindlessly fall into some sort of 2-1-2 or 1-2-2 forecheck. It happens in summer shinny. But when a new guy wants them doing new things, they have to ... *shudder* ... THINK.

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