Canadiens look back to find new coaches
General manager Bob Gainey decided he was the best person to straighten out the slumping Montreal Canadiens.
Gainey fired coach Claude Julien on Saturday and made himself interim coach. He also brought in former team captain Guy Carbonneau as an associate coach who will take over as head coach at the end of the season.
“I’m the one who’s responsible, and this gives time for Guy to get comfortable with the team and the players,” Gainey said. “It’s more fair for myself to step in and take responsibility until the end of the season.”
The 52-year-old Gainey, a top defensive forward who helped Montreal win five Stanley Cup titles during his Hall of Fame playing career, directed the Canadiens to a 6-2 victory over San Jose on Saturday night.
Gainey became head coach of the former Minnesota North Stars in 1990 and was coach and general manager for the Stars from 1992-96. He remained the GM in Dallas until 2002 – winning a Stanley Cup in 1999.
Julien, hired on Jan. 17, 2003, leaves his first NHL coaching job with a 72-62-10 record. He helped Montreal reach the second round of the playoffs in 2004.
But after a 12-3-1 start, the Canadiens won only seven of the next 25 games and dropped from first to 10th in the Eastern Conference. They made the move following a 2-1 loss at Colorado on Wednesday night in which they blew a third-period lead.
“The coach is our boss and he makes everyone accountable, and if it doesn’t happen, like in any job, the guy in charge pays the price,” team captain Saku Koivu said. “But it’s always unfortunate when it happens.”
On the ice
Sabres 10, Kings 1: At Buffalo, N.Y., Jochen Hecht and Jason Pominville scored three goals apiece as the Sabres notched their highest goal total in almost 13 years.
The 10 goals were the most the Sabres scored since a 10-7 win over Detroit on Feb 24, 1993. Buffalo’s five-goal first period was the team’s best since scoring five in a 7-1 win over Washington on Dec. 31, 2003.
Avalanche 4, Flyers 3 (OT): At Philadelphia, Alex Tanguay scored with 45.8 seconds left in overtime, helping Colorado spoil Peter Forsberg’s first game against his former team in the Avalanche’s win over the Flyers.
The Flyers forced overtime with a frantic final 2 minutes of regulation, getting goals from Mike Knuble and Forsberg.
Senators 5, Oilers 3: At Edmonton, Alberta, Vaclav Varada scored twice and Dany Heatley added his team-leading 28th goal to lead Ottawa to a victory over the Oilers.
Antoine Vermette and Peter Schaefer also scored to help the Senators tie Philadelphia and Detroit for the NHL lead with 63 points.
Red Wings 4, Rangers 3: At Detroit, Brendan Shanahan’s second goal of the game snapped a third-period tie and the Red Wings broke New York’s streak of seven games in which it earned at least a point.
Robert Lang and Johan Franzen also scored for the Red Wings.
Jaromir Jagr, Michael Nylander and Jed Ortmeyer had the goals for the Rangers.
Canucks 8, Islanders 1: At Uniondale, N.Y., Todd Bertuzzi scored twice on Vancouver’s first three shots en route to his fifth career hat trick and the Canucks chased New York goalie Rick DiPietro with three second-period goals.
Stars 2, Bruins 1 (SO): At Boston, Jussi Jokinen scored the only goal of the shootout to lift Dallas to its season-high sixth straight win.
Boston goaltender Tim Thomas, making his first start since April 5, 2003, made 37 saves before the shootout. The Stars improved to 5-0 in shootouts, while the Bruins dropped to 0-3.
Coyotes 4, Maple Leafs 3: At Toronto, Paul Mara, Geoff Sanderson, Ladislav Nagy and Fredrik Sjostrom scored goals to help Phoenix overcame a three-goal, first-period deficit in a victory over the Maple Leafs. The Coyotes have won two in a row.
Flames 4, Wild 1: At St. Paul, Minn., Jarome Iginla scored early in the third period and Calgary concluded an otherwise unsuccessful road trip with a win over Minnesota.
The Flames lost the first three games of their four-game trip after winning four in a row at home.
Canadiens 6, Sharks 2: At Montreal, Andrei Markov had two goals and two assists in a six-goal second period to help the Canadiens beat San Jose.
Blue Jackets 5, Panthers 4 (OT): At Sunrise, Fla., David Vyborny scored a power-play goal with 12 seconds left in overtime, and Pascal Leclaire made 48 saves in Columbus’ victory over Florida.