Following yet another listless, less than impressive showing in a loss to the Ottawa Senators, the Montreal Canadiens have announced that they have fired head coach Claude Julien and associate head coach Kirk Muller. Dominique Ducharme has been named interim head coach.
The Canadiens have appointed Dominique Ducharme interim head coach and have added Alex Burrows to the coaching staff. Claude Julien and Kirk Muller have been relieved of their coaching duties. https://t.co/rhkfrD9m8f
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) February 24, 2021
Alex Burrows was also named to the team’s NHL coaching staff. He had been an assistant with the Laval Rocket.
After taking over on February 14th, 2017, Julien compiled a 129-113-34 record with a pair of playoff berths that both resulted in first round exits. In that time, the Canadiens nearly won the draft lottery in 2018, ending up third overall and selecting Jesperi Kotkaniemi. Despite the vote of confidence from Marc Bergevin following two eight game losing streaks last season, the current 2-4-2 run was the straw that broke the camel’s back.
Marc Bergevin and Ducharme will speak to the media once the team arrives in Winnipeg later today. There is no word who will replace Alex Burrows on the Laval Rocket staff.
