Wilson Hopes to Lead by Example

Eight losses in a row, and tempers are short all over the Mighty Duck organization. Little things become big things. People fly off the handle, then regret it.

Coach Ron Wilson? He’s chewing gum and wearing a ball cap in practice. His occasional curmudgeon act is in storage.

“You have to stay positive and keep working,” Wilson said with a shrug, explaining his mood. “You could feel sorry for yourself. It’s not that this isn’t important. It’s very important. I have a passion for it. It’s my life, next to my family. It’s what I think about all the time. We are down, but I’m the one that has to be strong. If I can’t be strong, how can anyone else do it?”

Paul Kariya’s return didn’t end the Ducks’ slide, but it has turned the mood of the team. There’s still no indication when the losing streak will end, but the Ducks’ 6-3 loss to Vancouver Wednesday somehow didn’t seem so wretched.

“It didn’t feel that bad at all,” right wing Joe Sacco said. “Honestly, last night was the first game we felt like a team. Paul’s our best player and he just creates more life for guys. We’re excited to see him back. It’s like a fresh start again to the season.”

Wilson admits his mood isn’t all genuine. It’s part concoction, designed to spill over to the team.

“It’s sort of both. I mean, no one feels more heat or responsibility than a coach when you’re not winning,” he said. “You want to come out of it, so you have a tendency to talk about what you’re not doing right instead of some of the positives, the good things you’re accomplishing.”

Wilson’s frustration with the team’s mistakes spilled over Sunday, when he ripped his players and came close to ripping his bosses. His approach now is different.

“You watch what it does to people, like [fired New Orleans Saints Coach] Jim Mora. Losing can make you go nuts,” Wilson said. “I shouldn’t die doing this. I should die of old age, not of a heart attack because we lost a couple of games.”

So while others sweat, Wilson smiles? Is this the first indications of a form of resignation? After all, if Wilson ends up being the scapegoat for the Ducks’ bad start, he knows he’ll get another NHL job.

After the U.S. victory in the World Cup, if Wilson’s the first coach fired this season he’ll probably be the first coach hired as well. And if the Duck organization thinks a minor castoff such as Jim Campbell can make them look bad, they’d best not imagine how Wilson could make them look.

Despite the long history of tension between Wilson and club president Tony Tavares, who makes no secret of his displeasure when Wilson publicly criticizes his players, it would be hard for the Ducks to blame the team’s start on Wilson. Tavares says vice president/general manager Jack Ferreira is still authorized to negotiate Wilson’s overdue contract extension. Not that it’s an opportune time now.

It’s almost the exact situation the Ducks faced during last season’s early days--a bad start compounded by a coach being in the final year of his contract with an unsigned extension.

Kariya’s absence amplified the Ducks’ shortcomings and exposed some of their inexperienced personnel. Can his return solve it all?

“With a guy like Paul back, it allows the round pegs to go in the round holes and the square pegs to go in the square holes,” Wilson said. “Things go a lot smoother.

“Going into slumps, you see it coming. Coming out, you see it coming too.”

It can’t come soon enough for the Ducks.