Jim Montgomery exploded onto the Boston Bruins' scene like he was about to be the greatest head coach of all time. His first impression with the team was the record-breaking 2022-23 season, where he led a team that might not have had the most talent on paper to the greatest season in NHL history. A playoff flameout followed, which included some questionable lineup decisions along the way.
The following regular season wasn't as impressive, but the Bruins still finished second in the Atlantic Division and advanced a round further in the playoffs. However, the Florida Panthers eliminated them for the second straight season. It was evident that cracks were starting to form in Montgomery's tenure as head coach during that stretch run, and it came to a head the following year when the Bruins started 8-9-3.
The prevailing question was whether the Bruins' roster gave up on Montgomery or Montgomery gave up on the Bruins. The timing of his losing the locker room at the same time as the St. Louis Blues' job opening up was puzzling at best, considering that was where he was as an assistant coach before taking the Bruins job.
Sure enough, after the Bruins fired Montgomery, he ended up behind the bench in St. Louis. The Blues were flailing when he took over, but he led them on a 35-18-7 run the rest of the way to steal the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. The Blues were also a couple of seconds away from upsetting the President's Trophy-winning Winnipeg Jets in the first round if it weren't for a Cole Perfetti tying goal in Game 7.
Jim Montgomery is beginning to meet same fate with new team
None of us are in the locker room to know why, but it seems like Montgomery's way of coaching is outstanding in the short term, but begins to wear on his players. While it took two and a half seasons for it to happen in Boston, recent signs are starting to show that it's happening much quicker in St. Louis.
After the Blackhawks scored their 7th of the game, Jim Montgomery tried to pull Jordan Binnington for Joel Hofer...
— Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) January 8, 2026
But Binnington appeared to refuse to come off the ice, and Hofer was hiding down the tunnel to the Blues' locker room? ðŸ˜ðŸ˜… pic.twitter.com/j2V7q5bze4
Bruins fans know after the 2019 Stanley Cup Final that it might not be the easiest to deal with the tempermental Jordan Binnington. However, seeing two goalies outright obey their coach's orders is something we don't see every day. The Blues currently have the third-worst record in the Western Conference, and if history tells us anything, Montgomery's time as head coach might be coming to an end if the struggles continue.