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NHL Insiders Debate What’s Next After Bruins' Coaching Shift: "Next in Line to Be Fired?"

Published: Nov 21, 2024, 10:24 AM
1 min read
Updated: Jul 24, 2025, 11:22 AM
Fact checked by:
Sergey Demidov
The Boston Bruins fire Jim Montgomery and promote Joe Sacco. NHL insiders question the move and debate what’s next for the struggling team

The Boston Bruins fire Jim Montgomery and promote Joe Sacco (Photo by Joel Auerbach/Getty Images)

As many around the Boston Bruins and throughout the NHL expected, the Bruins fired head coach Jim Montgomery on Tuesday. What did catch some NHL executives and scouts by surprise, though, was that the Bruins made an internal and not an external hire by replacing Montgomery with longtime Boston assistant Joe Sacco.

“First of all, I don’t get why ‘Monty’ [Montgomery] was the fall guy here,” one longtime NHL executive opined to RG in the immediate aftermath of the firing on Tuesday. “He’s done a great job there, especially after they lost Bergeron and Krejci. But it’s always the coach who pays, right? Still, if you’re looking for a spark with an underachieving roster, why go with your assistant?

He’s not a new voice, and it’s a lateral move at best. Not a new voice at all.”

One common theory that has been floated around NHL insider circles for a couple of weeks now was that the Bruins were waiting to see what happened with former Bruins and current Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan. The Penguins have continued to spiral into mediocrity and another non-playoff season so far, and the theory was that if the Penguins made a coaching change before American Thanksgiving (Nov. 28), the Bruins would fire Montgomery and bring back the Marshfield, MA native and father-in-law of Charlie McAvoy. That obviously won’t happen now.

“When you try to connect the dots, I get how that makes sense, but I can tell you now, when your team is in a free-fall like the Bruins have been, and that cloud is hanging over you and getting darker every day, you can’t hang your next move on another team’s next move,” the same NHL executive said. “It will be interesting to see what happens with Sullivan.”

Sacco is in his 11th season behind the Bruins bench, where he most recently served as associate coach. He held the role of assistant coach from 2014-24. Before that, Sacco served as an assistant coach for the Buffalo Sabres in 2013-14 and as head coach for the Colorado Avalanche from 2009-13, where he compiled an overall record of 130-134-40. In 2010, he was named a finalist for the Jack Adams Award after leading the Avalanche to a 43-30-9 record in his first season there. Sacco also previously held several coaching positions in the American Hockey League.

While that’s a solid resume, unlike Sullivan, two multiple Stanley Cup champions are actually available on the NHL head coaching market. Joel Quenneville, who won three Stanley Cups with the Chicago Blackhawks (2010, 2013, 2015), and Darryl Sutter, who won two Stanley Cups with the Los Angeles Kings (2012, 2014), are both coaching free agents. The NHL recently lifted the more than two-year ban on Quenneville for his role in the Kyle Beach-Blackhawks sexual abuse scandal. Meanwhile, Sutter hasn’t coached since the Calgary Flames fired him on May 1, 2023.

Don Sweeney Next?

With the way the Boston Bruins are constructed, making some major changes now would likely result in them overpaying for help. Add on the lack of available cap space, and the Bruins really are stuck between a rock and a hard place.

But how did they get in this predicament?

“If you go on a spending spree like [Bruins GM] Don Sweeney did in the offseason, and you claim you’re all in for the Stanley Cup, then why wouldn’t you go all in with your next coaching hire and hire a two-time or three-time Cup champion?” an NHL scout asked rhetorically to RG.

And when you factor in that those signings were supposed to improve the club and help keep them afloat in a competitive Eastern Conference, the lack of success cannot be put on the coach entirely.

And that’s why our sources now all have their eyes on Sweeney, as he is the GM that is likely feeling the most amount of pressure in the NHL at the moment.

“Makes you wonder if the Sacco hire came from above? Ownership has likely told Sweeney they’re sticking with an interim coach and internal guy because if Sacco can’t turn it around, Sweeney’s next in line to be fired. Then the new GM can come in and hire his own coach. We’ll see.”

Things could get a little bumpy in Boston if things don’t turn around.

NHL Reporter
James Murphy is a veteran sports journalist with 25 years of experience covering the NHL, NCAA and CHL, including two decades on the Boston Bruins beat. His work has appeared on NHL.com, NESN, ESPN Boston and more, and he’s made regular TV and radio appearances on NESN, ESPN, TSN and SiriusXM. A familiar face in the hockey world, Murphy has covered multiple Stanley Cup Finals, NHL drafts and playoffs, and now co-hosts The Eye Test podcast with Pierre McGuire, interviewing top NHL executives, coaches and players. He joined RG in 2024 after stints with Boston Hockey Now and LiveBarn.
Interests:
NHL

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Daria Tuboltseva
Daria Tuboltseva
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Daria Tuboltseva has worked as a sports journalist since 2014 and has specialized in hockey coverage since 2016. She’s reported from some of the world’s biggest sporting events, including the Olympic Games (Beijing 2022), the FIFA World Cup (2018), the IIHF World Championships (2016–2019, 2021), the IIHF World Junior Championship (2019), and every Gagarin Cup Final since 2017.

Her work has appeared in leading Russian sports outlets like Championat.com and Sport24, as well as on the official websites of the KHL and the Women’s Hockey League (WHL). Daria has conducted exclusive interviews with some of the sport’s most recognized names, including Alex Ovechkin, Jaromir Jagr, Kirill Kaprizov, Sergei Bobrovsky, and Igor Shesterkin.

Beyond her writing, Daria brings extensive on-camera experience. She hosted NHL Today on Yandex.Efir and has produced powerful long-form projects such as the documentary Lokomotiv Crash and the series Hockey Country, featuring stars like Ovechkin, Malkin, Bobrovsky, Vasilevskiy, and Panarin. Her work has taken her to NHL games across North America and international events like the NHL Global Series in Europe.

In addition to her media career, Daria is a certified integrative nutritionist with a focus on sports nutrition. She works one-on-one with KHL players, helping them optimize performance and recovery through tailored nutrition plans. Her ability to blend media expertise with athlete support gives her a unique presence in the professional hockey world.

Daria publishes in both English and Russian and is the creator of the Telegram channel Coolest Game on Earth, where she shares insights, interviews, and behind-the-scenes stories from the hockey world.

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