The Leafs rounded out Sheldon Keefe’s coaching staff on Thursday, announcing that the club has hired former Lightning and Senators head coach Guy Boucher, as well as former player and Blues assistant coach Mike Van Ryn.
Boucher and Van Ryn will join fellow assistant coaches Dean Chynoweth and Manny Malhotra, along with goaltending coach Curtis Sanford, and video coaches Jordan Bean and Sam Kim, following the departure of Spencer Carberry who was hired as the Capitals’ head coach earlier this offseason.
Boucher served as head coach for the Tampa Bay Lightning from 2010 to 2013, and was heavily rumoured to be a candidate for the Leafs’ head coaching position before Mike Babcock was hired in 2015. Boucher would go on to become Ottawa’s head coach from 2016 to 2019, and has a career record of 191-186-46, including a pair of Conference Final appearances. A native of Notre-Dame-du-Lac in Quebec, Boucher also has a wealth of minor league, junior, and international coaching experience, including an AHL Coach of the Year award and a QMJHL Championship with Drummondville in 2009.
Van Ryn has spent the past five seasons as an assistant coach with the St. Louis Blues, and was part of the coaching staff that led the club to a Stanley Cup victory in 2019. Prior to coaching with the Blues, Van Ryn spent two seasons in the Arizona Coyotes’ organization, serving as the head coach for their AHL affiliate in Tucson during the 2017-18 season. He also has experience coaching at the junior level, including a season as head coach of the Kitchener Rangers in 2015-16.
This will be Van Ryn’s second tour of duty with the Leafs after playing in 27 games for the club during the 2008-09 season before injuries ultimately cut his playing career short. As a player, the native of London, Ontario suited up in 353 games for the Blues, Panthers, and Leafs, amassing 30 goals and 99 assists.
(Statistics from EliteProspects.com)
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