Longtime head coach Bruce Boudreau is ready and waiting to return behind the bench in the NHL, and the New Jersey Devils appear to be on his short list of teams. In an article from Ryan Novozinsky of NJ Advance Media, the Devils do not appear enthusiastic about retaining interim head coach Travis Green and will look through the market for an upgrade this offseason.
Since Green took over the reins for New Jersey, the Devils have produced a 6-7-0 record, and still find themselves five points back of the Washington Capitals for the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, with less than 10 games remaining in the regular season. After last year’s 112-point finish, General Manager Tom Fitzgerald was certainly looking for this team to keep pace in the competitive Metropolitan Division.
One of the main factors in Boudreau’s interest in New Jersey is his connection to the Hughes brothers from many years ago. When asked about the two, Boudreau said, “I got to meet Jack and Quinn when they were three or four years old. I’d watch them skate when we’d have ice. Ellen was the skating coach, so they’ve gotten into this culture and they were very serious about it. Jim Hughes was a very serious coach. I’m sure those guys, at an early age, were doing things that kids couldn’t do at twice their age."
With an established relationship with one of the team’s most important players, Boudreau may be a seamless fit with the Devils organization. However, he will not be handed the position and will have to compete with several other high-profile coaching candidates this summer.
Even though Boudreau currently sits 22nd all-time in wins amongst individuals who have held the position of head coach in the NHL, he has been unable to capture the Stanley Cup after coaching his teams to the Stanley Cup playoffs more often than not. Because of this, New Jersey may opt to employ a candidate with more recent postseason success, such as Craig Berube, the former head coach of the St. Louis Blues.
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