BOSTON — While nothing has been finalized yet, Jim Montgomery is expected to be named the next coach of the Boston Bruins, according to league sources.
David Quinn and Jay Leach had been perceived as front-runners at the outset of the coaching search, but the 53-year-old Montgomery’s candidacy has gained steam after the last couple of days and now it appears that he has won the job. As of Thursday evening, there has been no announcement from the Bruins that GM Don Sweeney has finished his search that is now more than three weeks old since Bruce Cassidy was fired on June 7.
While he comes with some issues, Montgomery’s coaching abilities are highly regarded. In his three years as head coach of the Dubuque Fighting Saints, he won the USHL championship twice. In his five years at Denver from 2013-18, he amassed a 125-56-26 record. Montgomery then took a Dallas Stars team that had missed the playoffs the previous two years, took them to the postseason, and won a series. At the time of his firing the next year, the Stars were one of the NHL’s hottest teams at 18-8.
