Montreal Canadiens confirm Michel Therrien will stay as head coach

Michel Therrien will return as the Canadiens head coach next season despite a horrible 2015-2016 season.

The Montreal Canadiens had an awful season, finishing in 22nd place overall in the NHL with a 38-38-6 record. That was especially disappointing because Montreal began the season with a nine game winning streak. As an Original Six team, the Canadiens and their fans have a sense of pride and expectations are high. Despite calls for change, Montreal will retain the services of head coach Michel Therrien through the beginning of next season.

On the surface, this is a questionable at best decision. Therrien was not able to adapt to his team’s flaws once the guy who masked those flaws (reigning Vezina Trophy and Hart Trophy winner Carey Price) got injured and wound up missing most of the season. Good coaches adapt their systems to help their team continue to have success, even if it’s not a popular decision. That’s something that Therrien didn’t do.

However, perhaps this is the right decision for the Canadiens – at least for now. This clears up any suspicion of Michel Therrien’s future and keeps his future from being a constant issue. While Therrien should be replaced, there aren’t any viable options out there right now. The only strong candidate out there is Guy Boucher and if Montreal wanted him, they’d have fired Therrien earlier.

This also keeps the option open of firing Therrien if, say, the Bruins decided to fire Claude Julien. If a strong candidate is fire, Montreal can always fire Therrien and go after him or her. That might sound cruel and heartless, but the NHL is a pretty cruel and heartless business when it comes to coaches.

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