The Boston Bruins have officially hired Jim Montgomery as the 29th head coach in franchise history.
Montgomery joins the Bruins from the Blues, where he was an assistant coach from 2020-2022. He also has previously served as head coach of the Dallas Stars.
“The Boston Bruins are pleased to introduce Jim Montgomery as the next head coach of the Boston Bruins and welcome Jim, his wife, Emily, and his children, JP, Colin, Ava and Olivia, to the city of Boston,” Bruins general manager Don Sweeney said in a statement. “Jim has a winning history, and throughout the interview process he conveyed his ability to connect with all types of players while also demanding that his teams play with structure. We are excited for Jim to begin to make his imprint on our team.”
Montgomery replaces Bruce Cassidy, who was surprisingly fired by the Bruins despite leading the team to the playoffs in all six of his seasons. Cassidy has since been hired to coach the Vegas Golden Knights.
“‘Monty’ was a great member of our staff and I appreciate his time and efforts with our players,” Blues head coach Craig Berube said in a statement. “This is well-deserved and I wish him well with the Bruins.”
The Bruins are in the midst of a transformative off-season with the future of captain Patrice Bergeron just one of many questions left to be answered. The Bruins will also enter next season with a number of key players still recovering from injuries, including stars Brad Marchand and Charlie McAvoy.
Following the announcement, the Blues announced that Craig MacTavish would be joining their bench as an assistant coach under Berube.
MacTavish, who finished his playing career with the Blues, has coaching and management experience with the Edmonton Oilers. He has also worked as a broadcaster in recent years, including with Sportsnet.
