St. Louis Blues Fire Drew Bannister, Hire Jim Montgomery as Head Coach

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The St. Louis Blues have fired head coach Drew Bannister and named Jim Montgomery as their new head coach. Bannister, 50, was named interim head coach last season and permanent head coach ahead of this season. Montgomery, 55, has been signed to a five-year contract to become the 28th head coach in franchise history.

Montgomery spent the previous two and a half seasons with the Boston Bruins, where he compiled a 120-41-23 record (263 points) in 184 games and guided the team to back-to-back playoff appearances in 2023 and 2024. In the 2022-23 season, he led the Bruins to a Presidents’ Trophy victory, setting franchise records with a 65-12-5 record, setting the most wins and points (135) record in a single season in NHL history. That year, he also set the record for the most wins by a coach in his first season with a team and was awarded the 2022-23 Jack Adams Award as coach of the year.

Before his tenure in Boston, Montgomery was the head coach of the Dallas Stars, holding a 60-43-10 regular-season record over two seasons. His coaching career also includes assistant positions at the University of Notre Dame and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He later became the head coach of the Dubuque Fighting Saints, winning the USHL’s Clark Cup twice in three seasons (2011, 2013). In 2013, he took the helm at the University of Denver, leading the team to the 2017 NCAA National Championship during his five-year stint.

This move is the right one for the Blues. Bannister continuously put out a frustrating product, and last night’s (Nov. 23) loss to the New York Islanders was perhaps the team’s worst performance of the season. The offense struggled to produce scoring chances on a consistent basis, and his inability to establish chemistry in the lineup held them back. Montgomery is expected to debut as the Blues head coach tomorrow (Nov. 25) against the New York Rangers.