Blues hire Jim Montgomery as new HC after relieving Drew Bannister following poor start to 2024-25 season, fans react

The St. Louis Blues on Sunday fired Drew Bannister and appointed Jim Montgomery as the new head coach of the team.

Blues hire Jim Montgomery as new HC after relieving Drew Bannister following poor start to 2024-25 season, fans react

Jim Montgomery (L) and Drew Bannister (R) [Image via The Boston Globe/KSDK]

The job search for Jim Montgomery is already over. Five days after being fired from his position as the head coach of the Boston Bruins, he has been announced as the coach of the St. Louis Blues. This comes after Drew Bannister was relieved of his duties following a poor start to the season.

The Blues have struggled this season with their poor performances. In the last 10 games, they have managed just three victories. This run of form has seen them suffer some crushing defeats including an 8-1 trashing at the hands of the Washington Capitals.

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This also saw the Blues record tumble from 7-6-0 to 9-12-1. On the other hand, the Bruins have suffered a similar run of results.

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After winning 3-2 against the Blues, the Bruins lost three games on the bounce. The third loss against the Columbus Blue Jackets proved one too many for Montgomery, who was later fired from his position by GM Don Sweeney.

Mere-five days later than that, Montgomery has found a new place to work. On Sunday, the 55-year-old coach signed a five-year contract with the Blues.

Blues GM Doug Armstrong would describe him as a coach who is at his “prime” while releasing a statement regarding this development.

This was more an opportunity to get someone of Jim’s caliber more than anything else… He certainly has a very positive demeanor, works well with the top players in the organizations that he’s been with. I think he has a wealth of experience and he’s at the prime of his coaching career now and we’re the benefactors of that. I just think he’s the full package, or at least we hope he’s the full package.

GM Doug Armstrong said as per NHL.com

Montgomery lead the Bruins to two Stanley Cup playoffs in this tenure. In his first season, they won the Presidents’ Trophy as they finished with 65 wins in the 82-game regular season. However, on both playoff occasions, they lost to the Florida Panthers.

As for the Blues, they have not reached the playoffs in the last two seasons. However, they did win the Stanley Cup in 2019 against Montgomery’s former club, the Bruins in seven games.

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Social media react to Jim Montgomery being named new head coach of St. Louis Blues

The news of Jim Montgomery being fired from the Boston Bruins led to wild reactions on social media. Many fans jumped across platforms to support him and called out the team’s management for firing him despite a shaky start of the team.

Jim Montgomery
Jim Montgomery (Image via Yardbarker)

This time the fans are surprised by this sudden appointment of Jim Montgomery. Several fans of the Blues seemed pleased with this with many writing this as one of the best “Christmas gifts” for them. Check out some of the top reactions regarding this from X below:

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Prior to joining the Bruins, Montgomery served as the assistant coach of the Blues. This move now sees him going back to one of his former teams. He now has the chance to make an immediate mark on Monday as the Blues take on New York Rangers.