It’s been one week since the Bruins fired Bruce Cassidy, and it appears some candidates are starting to emerge as they search for his replacement. (Sorry, or you’re welcome, if that Barenaked Ladies song is now stuck in your head, by the way.)
Reacting to Bruins' decision to fire Bruce Cassidy
On the latest episode of his 32 Thoughts podcast released Monday morning, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman highlighted three candidates he has heard are “in the mix” for Boston: Jim Montgomery, Jay Leach and Nate Leaman.
“I heard he’s going to be in the mix in Boston,” Friedman said of Montgomery. “I’ve had a few more people say Jay Leach, Boston. The other guy that some people have mentioned to me with Boston is Nate Leaman, who’s the head coach at NCAA Providence.”
Montgomery, 52, has spent the last two seasons as an assistant coach with the St. Louis Blues. He was the head coach of the Dallas Stars from 2018-19. After leading the Stars to the second round of the playoffs in his first season, he was fired 31 games into his second season for “unprofessional conduct.”
Montgomery later revealed that he had a drinking problem and checked himself into rehab in Jan. 2020. He has said that the Stars made the right call in firing him and that it forced him to finally confront his alcohol abuse.
Montgomery was previously the head coach at the University of Denver, where he led the Pioneers to an NCAA national championship in 2017. Montgomery also won a national title as a star player at the University of Maine in 1993.
Leach, 42, spent four years as head coach of the Providence Bruins from 2017-21 before moving to the NHL level as an assistant coach with the expansion Seattle Kraken this past season. In 2019-20, his P-Bruins had the best record in the AHL’s Eastern Conference before COVID canceled the remainder of the season.
Leaman, like Montgomery, has won a national championship at the college level, leading Providence College to its first in 2015. The 49-year-old has a .608 winning percentage in 11 seasons with the Friars, and he also coached the United States to World Junior gold in 2021.
Leaman just signed a multi-year extension at PC in early May, amid speculation that Boston College and Boston University had both been in touch with him regarding their own coaching openings. Friedman acknowledged that could present a hurdle, but said that the Bruins have shown interest in Leaman in the past and could be doing so again now.
“He signed a really good deal in Providence. He almost before became the head coach of the AHL Providence Bruins,” Friedman said. “I don’t know why it didn’t happen. There’s some theories about why it didn’t happen, but he was a guy Boston wanted at the time. I’ve had a few people who have said they wouldn’t be surprised if he’s in the mix there, although he’s got a really sweet deal at Providence, I’ve been told.”
It’s worth noting that this doesn’t necessarily mean that the Bruins have already narrowed down their search to Montgomery, Leach and Leaman. It’s entirely possible that they are still considering a number of other candidates, including some they maybe haven’t even talked to yet. But, if it’s coming from Friedman, it’s fairly safe to say that those three are among those under consideration.
As for Cassidy, Friedman had a couple updates on him as well. Friedman reports that the Vegas Golden Knights are “taking a long, hard look” at Cassidy, and that Cassidy is also one of two names he’s “hearing the most” when it comes to the Dallas Stars’ opening (along with Pete DeBoer). Friedman said Cassidy “kind of fits” for the Detroit Red Wings, too, but that Wings general manager Steve Yzerman has cast a “wide net” and that there could be a bunch of candidates in play.
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