Gallant: 'I wasn't fired because of analytics'

After his abrupt firing Nov. 27 as head coach of the Florida Panthers, Gerard Gallant remains steadfast that there was no divide between he and the club's shift into analytics.

"I wasn't fired because of analytics," Gallant told ESPN's Pierre LeBrun. "I loved coaching the Florida Panthers and I'm a stubborn guy at times; maybe I said a little too much, maybe I gave my opinion a little bit too much. Maybe when they asked for my opinion, I have an honest opinion and sometimes it doesn't help you. Maybe it wasn't always what they wanted to hear. I don't know where it went from there."

General manager and current interim head coach Tom Rowe cited a philosophical divide and inconsistency in performance upon Gallant's dismissal, but Gallant insists analytics were a part of his agenda as leader of the Panthers bench.

"For me, analytics is certainly part of coaching, but it's not the whole thing. In my mind, if I take a job, analytics is part of it for sure, 25 to 30 percent, whatever percentage you want to put on it. It's definitely a tool. If you get the right information, you're happy with that. Every coach uses analytics. We all go over the same stuff," Gallant said.

It's clear something didn't add up, and Panthers owner Vincent Viola - handpicked by President-elect Donald Trump to become the Secretary of the Army - didn't have time to waste on any disagreements, even if it involved the most successful coach in the franchise's recent history.

Now, with two years left on the extension Florida awarded him in the midst of his Atlantic Division title season in 2015-16, Gallant patiently awaits his next opportunity.

"I'm not sitting here hoping somebody gets fired in order for me to get a call." Gallant said. "Something will eventually come up."