Jacques Martin Named Canadiens' Head Coach
Bob Gainey Counts on New Hire's Experience with Senators, Panthers
Patrick Roy. Bob Hartley. Marc Crawford. Don Lever. Those are just some of the names that had been bandied about in the discussion for the vacant position behind the Montreal Canadiens’ bench. In the end, General Manager Bob Gainey found his man under the rays of the Florida sun.
Jacques Martin was presented as the Habs’ new coach at a Monday afternoon press conference at the Bell Centre. Under contract as the Florida Panthers’ general manager, Martin worked out a deal with them, allowing him to head back north of the border. Gainey and Martin made it official on Sunday night.
“I looked at the situation our team was in and felt we needed a coach with experience,” explained the Canadiens’ general manager of his choice, just a year removed from his spot behind the Panthers’ bench. “We needed someone who could look at our young players and help them realize their potential. Jacques fit that description perfectly.”
With the interest in his services and the door open to him, Martin knew this was a chance he couldn’t pass up.
“The opportunity to coach the Montreal Canadiens was big part of it, as well as getting to work with Bob and his team,” admitted Martin, who will reunite with Assistant GM Pierre Gauthier and Director of Player Development and Recruitment Trevor Timmins, also formerly of the Ottawa Senators. “When you look at the players on this team, there is definitely a solid foundation in place to build a winning team.”
A Coach at Heart
In selecting Martin, Gainey not only gets a man of experience and one who has been in a hot hockey market before, but also someone who understands what it takes to achieve success with his roster.
“Communication with the players and the organization is very important,” expressed Martin. “With the players, it’s important to define their roles and speak to them regularly to ensure that they understand what’s expected of them.”
Martin to Meet with Assistant Coaches; Roland Melanson Will Not Return
Any time a new head coach is put in place, the next question becomes who his assistants will be. Rumors circulated regarding the addition of former Habs head coaches Mario Tremblay and Jacques Lemaire returning to the fold as an assistant and consultant, respectively, but that turned out to be nothing more than just unfounded speculation at this point.
“I’m going to meet with the current assistant coaches and after I’ve met with them, then I’ll sit down with Bob,” noted Martin.
One man he won’t be sitting down with is goaltending coach Roland Melanson, said Gainey.
“I spoke to Rollie yesterday and told him he won’t be on our staff next season and that he was free to explore other opportunities in the NHL as of today.”
The futures of Don Lever and interim Hamilton head coach Ron Wilson will be decided by June 15, when the options on both men expire.
Jacques Martin’s Coaching History
The Canadiens are no strangers to Martin as a coach, having faced and been frustrated by his teams in Ottawa and Florida. He’s been known to inflect a defensive-minded style, one that might not appease to some fans and, more importantly, players. Gainey doesn’t see it that way.
“I kind of shudder when I think back to the style of play we faced when he was coaching the Senators. It was a style that was always in our end zone. I didn’t think that was a very good style for us but it was a pretty good style for them!”
Martin concurred with his new boss and cleared up the notion that his system is a snoozer.
“I really believe when you have the puck, you’re on offense and when you don’t have it, you’re on defense,” he clarified. “I really believe in a puck possession game. I think it’s important for players to work hard to retrieve that puck, create opportunities and score goals, but I also think you have to play well at both ends of the ice.”
When pressed about his system and style and how it might affect more creative players like Alex Kovalev, Martin pointed out his history with the likes of Daniel Alfredsson, Marian Hossa and Martin Havlat, among others.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been one to stifle or limit the creativity of great offensive players. To me, it’s all about the work ethic and commitment.”
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