Coach Claude Julien Wins Jack Adams Award

Coach Claude Julien was presented with his first Jack Adams Award tonight as the NHL's coach recongnized "to have contributed the most to his team's success."

Last month, Julien was also named the Boston-Bruins-Examiner%7Ey2009m5d19-Boston-Bruins-Claude-Julien-named-Sporting-News-NHL-Coach-of-the-Year" target="_blank">Sporting News 2009 Coach of the Year to add to his resume.

Julien was hired June 19, 2007 as Head Coach of the Black and Gold. Thus far, Julien has compiled a regular season record of 94-48-22, while making playoff appearances in each of the two.

If "Defense-First" is Claude's motto, well, the proof is in the pudding.

Under the tutelage of Julien's predecessor, Dave Lewis, the 2006-07 Bruins ranked 29th in the NHL in plus-minus, with a minus-65 rating.

The following two years, with Julien behind the bench, the Bruins have improved their all-important team plus-minus category:

2007-08: Ranked 14th in the NHL with a plus-6

2008-09: Ranked 1st in the NHL with plus-60 . Chicago Blackhawks ranked second with a plus-45.

This article was originally published on Examiner.com

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