Bruins fire head coach Montgomery, Sacco named interim coach
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The Boston Bruins announced the firing of head coach Jim Montgomery on Tuesday after the team got off to a slow start this season, opening with a 8-9-3 record, good for fourth place in the Atlantic Division. Joe Sacco will assume interim head coaching duties.
Montgomery spent parts of three seasons at the helm of the Bruins, leading the club to a 120-41-23 record, one Presidents’ Trophy, and two playoff appearances.
“Today, I made a very difficult decision with regards to a coaching change. Jim Montgomery is a very good NHL coach and an even better person. He has made a positive impact throughout the Bruins organization, and I am both grateful and appreciative of the opportunity to work with him and learn from him," general manager Don Sweeney said in a statement.
Montgomery, 55, was hired by the Bruins prior to the 2022-23 season to replace Bruce Cassidy. In his first season, he led the Bruins to a record-breaking 65-12-5, 135-point season and was named the Jack Adams Award winner for coach of the year. However, Boston fell in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs to the Florida Panthers after blowing a three games to one lead.
“On behalf of the Boston Bruins, we thank Jim Montgomery for his accomplishments and impact on our organization. Jim’s open and honest communication with players, staff and management, as well as the positive attitude that he brought to the rink every day, helped lead our franchise to several on-ice accolades, including a historic 65-win season in 2022-23. We wish Jim and his family the best moving forward both personally and professionally," team president Cam Neely said in a statement.
Sacco is in his 11th season behind the Bruins bench, where he mostly served as an associate coach. He was previously the assistant coach for the Buffalo Sabres in 2013-14 and as head coach of the Colorado Avalanche from 2009-13 where he compiled a record of 130-134-40.
“Not happy with the way things are going,” captain Brad Marchand said after Monday’s 5-1 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. “We need to be much better in a lot of areas. Mistakes are going to happen in a game. We’re just compounding them. It’s not acceptable to have the same mistakes and same things over and over.
“It starts with our compete level. We have it throughout periods, but then we have other moments where we think we’re a skill team, and that’s not us. We have to understand our identity.”
The Bruins finished second in the Atlantic in 2023-24 and reached the second round of the playoffs but were once again ousted from the postseason by the Panthers.
Montgomery was previously head coach of the Dallas Stars for parts of two seasons before being fired 31 games into the 2019-2020 season.
Overall, the Montreal native has a 172-75-30 record as an NHL head coach.