Wayne Gretzky resigned this week as head coach (and director of hockey operations) for the NHL's Phoenix Coyotes. During his four seasons as Coyotes coach, only the St. Louis Blues and Los Angeles Kings had a worse winning percentage than Gretzky had in Phoenix.

Anyone who witnessed "The Great One" during his playing career can serve witness to his legitimate title. No one looked more skilled on ice than Gretzky and, following his trade from the Edmonton Oilers to the Los Angeles Kings in 1988, his remarkable talents is still recognized today for introducing professional hockey to certain sunny cities (including Phoenix).

But like so many great athletes, he was a better player than he was a coach.
Phil Esposito, Bryan Trottier, Denis Savard and Alex Delvecchio all were successful as players.  Like Gretzky, they all failed as NHL coaches.  Finally there is something the NHL has in common with the professional sports that, you know, Americans actually care about.

Success as a player does NOT mean success as a leader.  In fact, it seems the more mediocre one's career as a professional athlete - the better their chances to be a winning head coach or manager.

Today's top managers in major league baseball will hardly be remembered for anything they did as a ballplayer.  Tony LaRussa (St. Louis Cardinals) played a total of 132 games in the majors.  Tony Francona (Boston Red Sox) was a journeyman for most of his 10 year MLB playing career. Bobby Cox (Atlanta Braves) played a couple of forgettable seasons with the Yankees before he retired to coach.  Joe Maddon (Tampa Bay Rays) never made it past the minor leagues.

The NFL coaches from this era who are regarded as the best (Bill Belichick, Tony Dungy, Bill Cowher, Andy Reid) all either failed to play professional football or had marginal careers in the league when they did.

In the NBA, can anyone argue the coaching success that Phil Jackson has had compared to Earvin 'Magic' Johnson or Isiah Thomas?

It was said that Ted Williams had a difficult task of teaching others to hit a baseball.  Like many blessed with natural talents in sports, he couldn't understand why the ones who coached hitting weren't able to do so with the same ability that he had. And perhaps that's what makes the players who had to study, learn and work to be among the best, more effective as teachers and leaders later. 

For many others who dominated their respective games on the field, they should have stayed away from coaching after they retired from playing.

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