There are losing streaks, and then there’s the Anaheim Ducks‘ recent stretch of struggles.
The club fell to the Philadelphia Flyers earlier on Saturday, marking their seventh straight loss. They have just two regulation wins in their last 25 appearances as they continue to fall down the standings.
Currently sitting last in the Western Conference and 28th in the league, this season is lost — and, presumably, so is head coach Randy Carlyle’s job.
“A big decision looming on Randy Carlyle,” Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston said during the Headlines segment on Hockey Night in Canada. “It’s clearly been management’s preference to try to ride this out, to keep the veteran coach behind the bench throughout the season, but they’ve hit a new low now losing seven games in a row, outscored 37-8 in those games.”
The next man up, according to Johnston, is likely Dallas Eakins — but he’s got the AHL’s San Diego Gulls doing well, currently sitting third in the Pacific. So, what’s a general manager to do?
“There is some thought that they might now have to finally make that change,” Johnston explained. “They’ve wanted to keep Dallas Eakins down in the American Hockey League with the San Diego Gulls. He’s thought of as the eventual successor to Carlyle, but with the way this road trip went, they might be forced into a decision a little quicker than they wanted.”
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