In a move that came out of nowhere, the St. Louis Blues have hired former Boston Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery, firing Drew Bannister to make way for their new bench boss. What does this mean for the Blues now, and was it a good move?
Montgomery is familiar with the organization, having coached there as an assistant coach from 2020-2022 under Craig Berube after being fired from his head coaching job with the Dallas Stars. Montgomery then took a head coaching job with the Boston Bruins, where he led them to the best regular season by any team in NHL history with a 65-12-5 record. However, the Bruins lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Florida Panthers, before losing to Florida again in the second round last season. After an 8-9 start to this season, Montgomery was fired. Now, he has returned to St. Louis, where he will try to turn around an organization that has struggled since a Stanley Cup run in 2019.
The Blues have had a pretty rough start to the season, currently holding a 9-12-1 record. Goalie Jordan Binnington has been at the center of trade rumors, but as of now, no trade has been done. The Blues lost to the Islanders 3-1 on Saturday, and now they have made a head coaching change. I think it's a great one. In my opinion, Montgomery wasn't the main problem in Boston. Yes, I think he had a hand in the issues there, but him getting fired was a surprise to me. So, this feels like a steal for the Blues. Montgomery has yet to really prove himself in the playoffs, but I think that getting a coach with his reputation in the regular season is massive for the organization, who has struggled to stay relevant.
The Blues have been led this season by 26-year old Jordan Kyrou, who's been with the Blues his whole career. Kyrou leads the team in points and assists, scoring 18 points in 22 games including 12 assists. Former New York Ranger Pavel Buchnevich is second with 13 points. The Blues need some more talent, but Montgomery brings some stability to a team that badly needs it.
It remains to be seen if the Blues will be buyers or sellers at the deadline, but looking at their current roster and record, the Blues will be selling. Getting some more picks and younger prospects that Montgomery wants will allow him to leave his influence on the team, both the good and the bad. But, there's no doubt in my mind that the Blues have made a good decision, as the team didn't look all that great with Bannister as the head coach. The Blues are in a cold spell right now, going 3-7 in their last ten games. St. Louis has scored more than three goals only five times in 22 games. That doesn't bode well for any team in a league where scoring four to five goals a game is slowly becoming the new normal.
The Blues will most likely not be in the playoff hunt, barring any massive turnaround with Montgomery behind the bench. Regardless of what happens this season, Montgomery's homecoming is a great move for him and the Blues franchise.