As Murls First Reported, Jim Montgomery Is The New Coach Of The Boston Bruins
Bruins fans hadn't been this surly after the season ended since the team laid an egg in Game 7 of the 2019 Stanley Cup Final. The combination of the team firing Bruce Cassidy then extending Don Sweeney after a first-round flameout gave Bs backers way more conniptions than normal. Reports that former Rangers coach David Quinn would be the likely replacement pissed many of them off even further. But today, the Bruins made a great move to assuage its jittery fanbase when the team announced that it hired Jim Montgomery to be the 29th coach in franchise history. Pierre LeBrun reported that he signed a three-year deal worth around $2M per season. Spittin' Chiclets crew member Matt Murley was the first to report the hiring.
Bs fans should be absolutely fired up for this move. Montgomery has had success wherever he's coached and has never had a losing record. He has a keen hockey mind and is a terrific player's coach who also works well with young players. After seeing Cassidy's bumpy relationships with some of his more youthful charges, the Bruins apparently realized that they'll catch more flies with honey than vinegar, particularly in a league that is slowly gravitating away from total hard-ass bench bosses. Monty made a quick video to introduce himself (gotta love the bear).
He spent the last two years as a very well-liked assistant with the St. Louis Blues.
Prior to the Blues, he was head coach of the Dallas Stars for just under a season-and-a-half before being dismissed for "unprofessional conduct". Less than a month after losing his job, Montgomery checked into rehab to get help for alcohol abuse and acknowledged that the Stars made the "appropriate call" in parting ways.
Montgomery hurt himself and his family yet he certainly didn't do anything that should prevent him from ever becoming an NHL head coach again. Like many folks, he had personal failings as a result of substance abuse. After what he referred to as his "wake-up call", he sought help and did what needed to be done to save his family and career.
I read a lot of ignorant dipshits online referencing his time in Dallas and his issues with alcohol. I don't know why I'm surprised by anything I see on social media anymore but Monty should be commended for fixing himself and working his way back behind a bench, particularly when the whole world was aware of his problems. That's not an easy thing to do. Anybody who shits on an addict/alcoholic getting better or trying to get better is an asshole.
As for the Bs, this is the shot in the arm that the team needed after the last several weeks. Not only is he a pisser hire for the guys already here, he's the type of coach that can be a deciding factor for a free agent about to sign a new deal. And now all of the sudden, the 2022-23 Boston Bruins season looks much sunnier than it did just a few days ago.