Stars Fire Head Coach Dave Tippett
Season of Avery and injuries dooms Dave in Dallas
By ERIC KREINDLER
Updated 5:00 PM CST, Wed, Jun 10, 2009
The Dallas Stars fired head coach Dave Tippett according to a report from TSN.
Tippett spent six seasons at Stars head coach, but his tenure in Dallas became clouded after the team named former player Joe Nieuwendyk general manager.
Sources said that the Stars have asked for permission to talk to former Los Angeles Kings coach Marc Crawford, who remains under contract to the Kings. It's not clear at this point whether Crawford has been hired to take Tippet's place or is merely a candidate.
The Stars started the season as a playoff favorite, but struggled. There were 379 man-games lost to injury. The team's key offseason signing -- forward Sean Avery -- didn't work out and ended up becoming a distraction. The team struggled with consistency in several areas.
The Stars finished the season in 12th spot in the Western Conference and missed the playoffs for the first time during Tippett tenure in the Lone Star state.
Tippett was hired by the Stars from the Los Angeles Kings, where he was an assistant, in May 2002 and led the team to two Pacific Division titles.
The Moosomin, Saskatchewan, native also played 11 seasons in the NHL and accumulated 93 goals and 169 assists in 721 career games. Following his playing career, Tippett led the IHL's Houston Aeros to the 1999 Turner Cup while serving the dual role of general manager and head coach.
First Published: Jun 10, 2009 4:44 PM CST
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