Checking the resistance on a HV coil is a good starting point. While on the bench and with your VOM, all can be checked. You can tell you if the coil is shorted or open. NOW, install the coil and put it under load, and you can get something all together different.
You can check the amperage of the primary winding, but unless you specifically had a HV Test probe for the secondary winding, it is just the "SWAG " observation.
There are numerous aftermarket coils that "claim" to work. The only one I would have faith in, is the Bosch Coil as suggested by David Kirk of Kirk Engines
(
http://www.kirkengines.com/ )