Coaches are hired to be fired. That’s the reality of the job. They know that going in, but that doesn’t mean they like it. After Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe was fired on Thursday, Montreal Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis became the sixth longest-tenured bench boss in the NHL. Who is ahead of him and when should St. Louis start worrying about his job?
5 Current Longest-Tenured Coaches
When the Maple Leafs announced Keefe had been relieved of his duties yesterday morning, they knocked off the fifth longest-tenured coach in the league. He was hired in November 2019, giving him five seasons behind Toronto’s bench.
Andre Tourigny now ranks fifth. He was hired by the now-defunct Arizona Coyotes in July 2021, just seven months before St. Louis was hired by the Canadiens.
In fourth place, we find Rod Brind’Amour who has been coaching the Carolina Hurricanes since May 2018 or a little over five seasons. The Carolina bench boss fits perfectly with his team, guiding them with an iron fist in a velvet glove. His contract expires on July 1, and he would be a highly sought-after commodity if an extension isn’t worked out. The Maple Leafs could use him; maybe he could whip their stars into shape and make them fit for the playoffs.
Jared Bednar of the Colorado Avalanche is third after taking over from Patrick Roy when he walked out on the team in August 2016. While this was Bednar’s first coaching job in the NHL, it hardly looked like it. He immediately moulded the team to his coaching style and took the Avalanche to their first Stanley Cup since 2000-01.
Related: Mike Sullivan Might Not Be the Best Coach for the Penguins’ Future
In second place, we find Mike Sullivan, who has coached the Pittsburgh Penguins since December 2015. The fact that he’s still there would be puzzling if it wasn’t for management’s questionable decisions. The Penguins aren’t rebuilding, yet they’ve missed the playoffs for the last two seasons. Of course, it’s hardly Sullivan’s fault. It’s more on management who re-signed aging stars Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang within five days of one another in July 2022, trying to prolong the life of their core. But coaches often pay the price for the GM’s decisions – but not this time, not yet anyway.
There’s Something About Marty
Meanwhile, St. Louis has been leading the Canadiens since February 9, 2022, and the Habs have yet to make the playoffs. Why hasn’t he been fired? Because the organization started a rebuild from scratch and was not realistically expected to make the playoffs yet. The same goes for Tourigny’s former Coyotes.
When Kent Hughes was named general manager, he said that, in an ideal world, his Canadiens would have speed and a strong attack. He also mentioned that the team must fit the coach and vice versa, and the roster he’s built is starting to look like a team that can play the brand of hockey he wants. Furthermore, it is also starting to look like a roster that suits their coach. The Canadiens are playing faster, and the defence-first mentality that dominated the last fifteen years in Montreal is now gone.
Finally, St. Louis has a way with young players. He has found a way to unlock Cole Caufield’s potential and turn him into a more complete player. As for Juraj Slafkovsky, he has improved by leaps and bounds working under St. Louis’ tutelage.
While Hughes is patiently acquiring the pieces of the puzzle that will make the Canadiens perennial contenders, St. Louis’ job is to put those pieces in the right place. Soon, Montreal will be expected to make the playoffs, and results and wins will matter. So far, the coach has done wonders for player development, and that’s all that matters, for now.