The Belleville Senators’ decision to fire head coach Troy Mann on Thursday night has people talking in professional hockey circles, and the reason for his departure may have to do with an ethical glitch.
According to what the TSN network indicated on Friday morning, the 53-year-old New Brunswicker suffered the ax because of a relationship of mistrust having been established between the parties concerned. The same source also alleged that the ousted coach passed on information to a rival National Hockey League organization about recruiting the Ottawa Senators. The people and clubs concerned have not yet commented on this rumor.
“Although a change in this position is not the ideal scenario over the course of a season, we felt it was necessary in order to improve the performance of the team,” the Senators general manager said Thursday, Pierre Dorion, by press release.
Mann lost his job after the 5-3 win over the Rochester Americans. The subsidiary of the “Sens” is having trouble this year, having kept a record of 17-22-4 good for 38 points and the penultimate level of the North section of the American League. The former pilot had been in office since the start of the 2018-2019 campaign, having previously led the Hershey Bears for four years.
Assistant David Bell will assume the head coaching duties on an interim basis for the remainder of the regular schedule.