On June 4, 2009 the Colorado Avalanche named Joe Sacco as the new head coach.  This will be the first NHL head coaching job for the 40 year old, American born Sacco after only serving two years as head coach for Colorado’s AHL affiliate the Lake Erie Monsters.   Both seasons the Monsters finished their seasons 6^th overall and did not make the playoffs.   It seems as Colorado is looking to take the team in a new direction as far as coaching by bringing in young, fresh eyes after coming off of the worst season in franchise history.

Sacco played college for Boston University and was drafted 71^st overall in the 1987 NHL Entry Draft by the Toronto Maple Leafs and earned the nickname “Panimal” for his aggressive nature.  He played in the NHL from 1990 to 2003.  He played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, the New York Islanders, the Washington Capitals and the Philadelphia Flyers.

So now that Colorado has addressed the coaching question, the next piece of the puzzle is will Joe Sakic return for another season or will he pass the torch onto Paul Stasney?  It certainly seams that Colorado is trying to rebuild its franchise from the ground up.  I can not wait to see what the 2009-2010 season holds for them.

Tags: Avalanche, Colorado, Sacco