Game over: Vancouver Canucks fire head coach Alain Vigneault

Vancouver Canucks' head coach Alain Vigneault blows a whistle while running a drill during hockey practice in Vancouver, B.C., on Tuesday April 10, 2012. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

What a difference a season makes.

Just two short years since he guided the team to within a game of winning the Stanley Cup championship, the Vancouver Canucks have fired head coach Alain Vigneault, along with associate coaches Newell Brown and Rick Bowness.

It was widely speculated that Vigneault would lose his job with the team after the Canucks were swept 4-0 by the San Jose Sharks in their best-of-seven series Western Conference quarter-final series.

After the crushing loss, General Manager Mike Gillis said a total overhaul of the team was necessary to keep it competitive – and stand a chance of cup contention in years to come.

At a media availability after the season-ending defeat, Gillis sounded optimistic about Vigneault remaining with the organization, calling him "a very good hockey coach" and praising his "incredible record over the past five years."

But today Gillis said the coaches would be relieved of their duties. He called it a difficult decision for the team, but one that needed to be made.

“I like Alain. I like him as a person. I respect him,” Gillis told reporters at a press conference at Rogers Arena.

The GM said the decision to fire coaching staff wasn’t an emotional one: “We’re a results-oriented business and we have to look at the results. In this business, you have to get results."

Gillis said no decisions have been made as to who would take over the head coaching position but that the team “is focused on getting the right person in place.”

“We will make the decision based on the consideration it will bring us back to the level that we expect,” he said. “I’m excited about where we’ll go from this point forward.”

Since Vigneault’s appointment in 2006, the Quebec native led the Canucks to two Presidents’ Trophies, a Stanley Cup Final appearance, and five Northwest Division titles and postseason berths in six seasons with the club. The honours helped nab him a 2007 Jack Adams award.

Vigneault leaves the Canucks as the winningest coach in franchise history with 313 regular season victories.

Assistants gone

The team is also saying goodbye to Rick Bowness and Newell Brown, two mainstays in the organization.

Bowness, a former right-wing NHL hockey player who spent 22 seasons with the league in a coaching capacity, has spent the last six years with the Canucks.

The 56-year-old New Brunswick-native previously worked with the Phoenix Coyotes and the New York Islanders as assistant coach. He held the position of head coach for five NHL teams previous to that.

Newell Brown joined the Canucks in 2010 after serving as assistant coach with the Anaheim Ducks for the past five seasons.

He also worked as assistant coach for the Columbus Blue Jackets and Chicago Blackhawks over his 13-year NHL coaching career.

Gillis praised the outgoing coaches for their dedication to the team, saying the trio worked tirelessly to lead the team to great on-ice success.

“I am personally grateful to each of them and their families for their commitment to the Canucks and the City of Vancouver and wish them continued success in future,” he said.