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If you don't remember or maybe you weren't alive yet, former Boston Bruins Craig MacTavish struck and killed a young woman while he was driving his car under the influence of alcohol, he plead guilty and was sentenced to a year in jail. Kim Radley died as a result of a senseless incident and MacTavish got a mere slap on the wrist as he lived in dormitory like conditions at the Lawrence Correctional Alternative Center. Hardly a fitting penalty for MacTavished, you can barely call it a jail type setting.
“Hockey players have not been the only victims, either. Craig MacTavish, a player at the time and now the coach of the Edmonton Oilers, pled guilty to vehicular homicide in 1984 after killing a woman in a car accident while he was impaired. He spent a year in jail, and spoke against drunk driving as part of his community service. “While I am sure that some of you will say but that it was a long time ago and what’s the big deal Goon, however, I ask you to look at this way, think of the victim and her family, Kim Radley would have been 53 years old today if her life hadn’t have been cut short by a selfish drunk driver. I am being serious, do we really want a coach of the hometown team the Minnesota Wild to be a former felon that committed vehicle homicide? Which in my opinion was a very preventable and unnecessary death. If I am missing the point, please tell why, I also imagine that I am not the only one that feels this way.
Michael Russo, Star Tribune ----With the Wild in the early stages of its deliberate search to find a replacement for Todd Richards, veteran coach Craig MacTavish has emerged as a strong candidate.
According to multiple league sources, the former Edmonton Oilers coach has had a handful of conversations with Chuck Fletcher and was recently interviewed by the Wild general manager at a Toronto hotel.
The 52-year-old MacTavish, who coached the Oilers from 2000 to '09, has been unwilling to talk about any of the NHL coaching vacancies other than to say he's "recharged" and ready to return to coaching.
"He's one of my favorites," Los Angeles Kings veteran forward Ryan Smyth, coached by MacTavish for six seasons, said in a phone interview Thursday. "He knows and understands the game very well and was exciting to play for. He understands the players very well. He knew me more than I did at times."
MacTavish, who guided the eighth-seeded Oilers to within one game of a Stanley Cup in 2006, would bring instant credibility to the Wild bench. He won four Stanley Cups in his 19-year playing career player -- three with Edmonton and one with the New York Rangers.
One of the great defensive centers, the well-spoken MacTavish brought that same acumen to his coaching. He's known as a defensive-oriented, technically sound coach, one who's a shrewd in-game bench manager and good communicator.
