Montreal acts fast for ex-B’s coach
Well, now we know just how well-regarded the former Bruins brain trust is across the National Hockey League.
Two years ago, former general manager Peter Chiarelli was hired by the Edmonton Oilers just nine days after being sacked by the Bruins. Yesterday, former coach Claude Julien beat Chiarelli by a couple of days.
Just a week after being fired by the Bruins, Julien is gainfully employed again. In a stunning move, Montreal Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin fired coach Michel Therrien and hired Julien, the winningest coach in Bruins history.
While GM Don Sweeney and team president Cam Neely probably did not expect it to be the Canadiens, they knew full well that Julien would only be unemployed for as long as he wanted to be.
“He’ll be a great coach in another organization in a short time, I’m quite positive of that,” Sweeney said last week.
Turns out that kicking back and relaxing is not exactly in Julien’s blood.
The move comes just two days after the Bruins, helmed by interim coach Bruce Cassidy, embarrassed the Canadiens 4-0 at the Garden. But the Habs had been in free fall for the second straight season. They have won just two of their past nine games, and something had to give.
“I would like to sincerely thank Michel for his relentless work with the Montreal Canadiens over his eight seasons behind the bench, including the last five seasons when we worked together,” Bergevin said in a team release. “I came to the conclusion that our team needed a new energy, a new voice, a new direction. Claude Julien is an experienced and well-respected coach with a good knowledge of the Montreal market. Claude has been very successful as an NHL coach, and he won the Stanley Cup. Today, we hired the best available coach, and one of the league’s best. I am convinced that he has the capabilities to get our team back on the winning track.”
The Habs needed permission from the B’s to speak with Julien and gained that on Sunday. It would have been in their right to block the move, but it made no sense. Not only would it be wrong for the B’s to keep Julien from doing what he does best, but he also was owed a reported $3 million next season.
It’s hard to think Julien would sign for anything much less than that, especially with so many possible options available in Florida, Las Vegas and with the New York Islanders to name a few.
While Julien was widely regarded as one of the best coaches on the market, it did not hurt that he is also a Francophone. The last time a non-Frenchspeaking man stood behind the bench it was Randy Cunneyworth in 2011-12, and his inability to communicate directly with the Frenchspeaking fans and media helped to undermine him. Julien previously coached the Canadiens from 2003-06, also replacing Therrien when the latter was fired in January 2003.
This latest move adds another delicious chapter to the best rivalry in hockey. The B’s and Habs finished their season series, so the only way they could meet again in 2016-17 would be in the playoffs. Right now they do not line up, as the thirdplace B’s are six points behind the first-place Habs.
But the Ottawa Senators are tied with the Bruins in points and have five games in hand on both the B’s and Canadiens. If the Sens catch Montreal and the B’s maintain their spot, it could set up a first-rounder between the B’s and Habs.
Lord knows, stranger things happen. In fact, they just did.