Claude Julien will be the head coach and Shane Doan will be the general manager of Team Canada’s entry into the upcoming Channel One Cup and the Spengler Cup.
Hockey Canada announced Friday its full management and coaching staff, which also included Blair MacKasey as director of player personnel, and former NHLers Bruce Boudreau and Scott Walker as assistant coaches.
Julien has a 667-445-162 coaching record in 1,274 regular-season NHL games with the Montreal Canadiens, New Jersey Devils and Boston Bruins. The 61-year-old, who won the Stanley Cup with Boston in 2011, was fired Feb. 24 during his second stint with the Canadiens last season.
And if the NHL pulls out of the 2022 Winter Olympics, he’ll also be behind the bench at the Beijing Games.
Canada’s team rosters for the events are usually comprised of European-based professionals. The country’s entry for the 2018 Olympics in Pyeongchang was selected from the Channel One Cup and Spengler Cup rosters after the NHL declined to participate in South Korea four years ago.
The NHL and NHL Players’ Association have committed to going to China, but have until Jan. 10 to pull out due to COVID-19 concerns without financial penalty.
Julien has recently been rumoured as a potential replacement for embattled Vancouver Canucks head coach Travis Green.
Doan, 45, is the career points leader for the Jets/Coyotes organization and retired in 2017. He is now the team’s chief hockey development officer. Internationally, Doan played for Team Canada and won two gold and three silver medals at the World Championships. He also helped Canada win the World Cup in 2004 and played on Canada’s 2006 Winter Olympic team.
Team Canada won the last Spengler Cup that was held, in 2019, and four of the last five. Canada has not finished in the top four in the Channel One Cup since 1995.
The Channel One Cup, previously best known as the Izvestia, is scheduled to be held in Dec. 15-19 in Moscow and the Spengler Cup is planned for Dec. 26-31 in Davos, Switzerland.
–With files from The Canadian Press
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