As the Vegas Golden Knights lifted the Stanley Cup in Bruce Cassidy’s first season as head coach, Boston Bruins fans were left wondering if their favorite team made a mistake.
Just over a year ago, the Bruins decided to part ways with Cassidy and, in turn, eventually hired Jim Montgomery. What followed seems straight out of a movie script. Montgomery and the Bruins went on to have the best regular season performance in NHL history, while Cassidy’s Golden Knights won the ultimate prize in the Stanley Cup.
While it seems like Cassidy proved the Bruins wrong, Boston still made the right decision in moving on from the head coach.
Seeing Cassidy lift the Cup is sure to be a melancholy moment. Imagine if he was able to do that in Boston and fans were getting ready for another duck boat parade?
But the Bruins needed a fresh start. Cassidy’s coaching style seemed to be rubbing younger players the wrong way and growing stale. The face of the issue being Jake DeBrusk.
The winger issued a trade request in 2021 that was eventually rescinded after the Bruins parted ways with Cassidy prior to the start of the 2022-23 season. Whether one has to do with the other is up to you, as DeBrusk hasn’t publicly said he rescinded the request due to Boston moving on from the head coach.
After six years with the Bruins, Cassidy needed to move on. With how long he was with the team, his message likely was running stale. Players can only hear the same message so many times.
According to Mark Stone, while it was time for the Bruins to move on from Cassidy, he was just with the Golden Knights needed.
“He brought an intensity to our locker room that maybe we needed,” Stone said after winning the Cup.
Montgomery seems to be a lot more easygoing compared to Cassidy. He isn’t as likely to call out players compared to the now Stanley Cup champion. Montgomery seems to be the definition of a player’s coach. After Cassidy, it makes a lot of sense for the Bruins to go in that direction.
Still, Montgomery had his own pitfalls that make it logical for Bruins fans to wonder if they were better off with Cassidy. Whether it be the handling of the goaltenders in the playoffs, playing veteran players late into the season, or randomly shuffling lines in the postseason, Montgomery had plenty of failures.
But clearly, something is working. Boston had the best regular season in NHL history. Sometimes a fresh message can be needed, and maybe that is the case for the Bruins.
Moving forward, Montgomery will prove to be the right move for Boston. While it stings now, he will be able to get the Bruins back to the top. They have the talent with the likes of David Pastrnak and Charlie McAvoy locked up long term, and Montgomery’s coaching style suits the modern player. While they likely won’t have a record-breaking season as they did in 2022-23, they will be contenders in the coming years.
So while it is tough to see Cassidy win it all after leaving the Bruins, Boston is in a good place. For all we know, they could be lifting the Cup at the end of next season. The Bruins needed a fresh voice, and Montgomery provided that. Cassidy’s results have no impact on Montgomery’s performance, and after a record-breaking season, Boston should be happy with its hire.
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This should have ended with “from the desk of Don Sweeney “. Using DeBrusk as the example, there were others in the same cradle. And oh by the way as soon as Cassidy left Jake “found his game” ….seriously!! He still was a ghost in the playoffs as were a few others that were counted on to at least play for 60 minutes with the hunger that all who lace have. I liked the article, I just don’t agree that replacing Cassidy and playing with injured and cry baby athletes was a wholesome decision. You can lead a horse to water….
Have a great summer and pray that Don and Cam clean up the roster with healthy hungry hockey players.