Ottawa Fires Another Coach

The Ottawa Senators, with the worst record in the NHL, fired coach Dave Allison, only hours after a major trade involving three NHL clubs.

This was the second time this season the Senators have dismissed their coach. Rick Bowness was fired Nov. 20. No replacement was named for Allison.

In the three-way trade completed after some two weeks of talks, the Toronto Maple Leafs acquired Kirk Muller from the New York Islanders and veteran goaltender Don Beaupre from the Senators in the seven-player deal.

The Senators got Toronto backup goaltender Damian Rhodes and junior star defenseman Wade Redden, the Islanders’ first-round pick last year. In a separate deal, Ottawa traded center Dan Quinn to the Philadelphia Flyers for future considerations.

The Islanders picked up Ottawa center Martin Straka, minor league left wing Ken Belanger from the Leafs and promising junior defenseman Bryan Berard.