The rookie coach’s bold moves have become bizarre, and just plain bad. Now the Devils have a coach-star controversy that could haunt them the entire season.
John MacLean is knotting his own noose, warming up his own hot seat.
The Devils’ coach said last night’s shocking scratching of $100 million man Ilya Kovalchuk was his decision. That bold act paid off to the tune of a humiliating 6-1 loss to the Sabres in Newark.
It left the stunned Devils tied for the worst record (.313 point percentage) in the NHL, mired in their longest home winless start (0-4-1) since 1983.
“That’s between him and I. It was my decision,” MacLean said. “I take responsibility for all my decisions. It was a coach’s decision, coach’s scratch. I’m not going to discuss it.”
Reminded that each ticket-buying fan contributes some $10 towards Kovalchuk’s $6 million salary and deserves a better explanation, MacLean refused to budge.
MacLean indicated that he decided to sit out Kovalchuk after yesterday’s morning skate, which could suggest an incident between the player and the coach.
The players were left mystified about what happened to the star winger.
Captain Jamie Langenbrunner said there was no issue between Kovalchuk and any other player.
“No, not at all,” Langenbrunner said. “We don’t know what’s going on.”
MacLean’s bold moves in this eight-game-old season started with shifting Kovalchuk to right wing from the left wing position he played his whole NHL career. After the Devils owned only one win in six, MacLean broke up the two big lines that were supposed to be the team’s strength this year, spreading the wealth among three threesomes.
Then, after Martin Brodeur answered critics with a shutout in Montreal Thursday, affording himself and the team the opportunity to reinforce that success last night, MacLean instead elected to give backup Johan Hedberg his first start as a Devil.
That dubious decision backfired badly. Combined with sitting out Kovalchuk, MacLean looks like a coach in desperate need of a victory tonight at the Garden.
And still, MacLean would not guarantee that Kovalchuk will play tonight.
“I’ll make that decision in the morning,” MacLean said.
With a road record of 2-1, riding two straight shutout triumphs, the Devils’ Garden visit tonight opens a stretch of six straight on the road.
Hedberg’s first start as a Devil was a nightmare. He gave up a soft goal to Drew Stafford on Buffalo’s first shot, a right circle wrister between the pads at 6:57 of the first. Tyler Myers was credited with giving the Sabres a two-goal lead at 16:33, uncovered by Patrik Elias in the right circle for a wide-open shot that may have gone in off Rob Niedermayer.
“Disappointing. I wanted to start off on a good note,” Hedberg said.
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Rod Pelley suffered a broken nose when struck by a shot in the first, but returned to action wearing a full mask in the third. . . . The Devils went 0-6 at the Meadowlands to open their woeful 1983-84 season.
mark.everson
@nypost.com