Montreal Canadiens: Bob Gainey Strikes Again, Now What?

(Photo by Phillip MacCallum/Getty Images for NHL)

The Montreal Canadiens have made the first step towards their offseason makeover that consists of finding a new owner, possibly a new GM, a new head coach, and new player contracts. Radical, isn't it?

Bob Gainey admitted to La Presse last week that the Organization advised him to focus on his duties despite the fuss surrounding the team’s ownership. So he went ahead with the nomination of a new head coach: Jacques Martin. 

Now, a few criteria had to be part of the potential candidates’ resumes. 

Is he bilingual? He is. Does he have a coaching experience? He does; with three NHL teams including almost a decade with the Ottawa Senators. Has he ever been far in the playoffs?

Let’s just say that he missed the playoffs once with Ottawa, brought them to the Conference finals once, but missed the playoffs again during his entire trip with the Florida Panthers. 

And since the insatiable fans that we are have to ask the deadly question: no, he hasn’t won a Stanley Cup yet. 

The opinions are divided regarding this new hiring, with Jacques Demers judging it as an “excellent choice” due to Martin’s sense of work ethic and discipline; while ESPN’s Scott Burnside said Bob Gainey “missed the mark by a wide margin." 

Burnside questions what was in Bob Gainey’s mind; which has been what we all wondered since the beginning of times. After numerous attempts to decipher the Bob Gainey’s decision process puzzle, we decided to settle down with our popular saying: only time will tell. 

However, Coach Martin’s sense of discipline will benefit the Montreal Canadiens which had to deal with enough controversy to give the team an allure of The Young and the Restless. 

The coaching staff has now to find, well, the staff. Kirk Muller and Doug Jarvis are still in office but there is little chance that they will remain assistant coaches this season. And now that Mario Tremblay won’t be back with the Minnesota Wild, should we expect a return of one the most controversial coaches of the Habs’ history to assist Martin? 

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