All things being equal I can see how the head coach would have the final decision. As I understand it the HC would have the final decision in relation to players coming in provided the players fit the clubs financial structure, however it doesn't make sense for the head coach to have the final decision re players leaving. For example the club changes the wage structure then those that don't fit the wage structure would automatically leave at the end of their contract. Equally say we got a bid for a player of 20 million (far fetched I know) then the HC might want to keep the player, but the club could decide to sell. I can't see the problem with announcing this before the end of the season, if the decisions been made, then it's made why not give everyone as much notice as possible, the final game is pretty much irrelevant and would be a good way for fans to say goodbye to the players.