Yesterday was an eventful day for Canadian teams, and as surprising as it might be, it does not include the Montreal Canadiens. So, you guessed it, Dominique Ducharme is still the Canadiens’ interim head coach.
Rather, the Edmonton Oilers, Ottawa Senators, and Toronto Maple Leafs announced quite the news.
Ottawa Senators Hired Pierre McGuire
The Senators announced they hired Pierre McGuire as senior vice president of player development.
"“He will work closely with Senators general manager Pierre Dorion and team owner Eugene Melnyk as the team continues to develop into a Stanley Cup contender,” said the organization in a report."
Most recently, McGuire was a broadcaster with NBC Sports, but he had previously worked as a scout with the Pittsburgh Penguins, and later won a cup as an assistant coach with them in 1992, and later worked as head coach of the Hartford Whalers.
So, the experience is definitely there for him. But what seems odd is that there many other options for the Senators, yet, they chose to hire McGuire, who had been working in broadcasting for 24 years.
There isn’t much to comment on yet, as we will have to see his impact on the team first, but to say I was shocked when I saw the news would be an understatement.
However, that was not the most surprising part of the day.
What could be even more shocking, you ask?
Edmonton Oilers Acquire Duncan Keith
The Oilers traded Caleb Jones and a 2022 conditional second-round pick to the Chicago Blackhawks for Duncan Keith.
They traded a 24-year-old defenceman AND a second-round draft pick for a Blackhawks legend, yes, but a 37-year-old legend, nonetheless. He’s a three-time Stanley Cup Champion (2010, 2013, and 2015), so there is no doubt that his experience in the playoffs will be a great tool to help the Oilers have a deep run. But, is it worth the two years remaining on his contract of $5.5 million AAV per year?
I’ll have to say no, especially when considering Jones’ $850,000 AAV instead.
While playoff and overall veteran experience cannot be bought, I can confidently say that the Blackhawks won this trade.
It will also be interesting to see if the Oilers have other similar moves in mind.
Toronto Maple Leafs Hire Dean Chynoweth
Last but not least, the Maple Leafs hired Dean Chynoweth as an assistant coach to replace Dave Hakstol who is now The Seattle Kraken’s head coach.
Chynoweth worked as an assistant coach for the Carolina Hurricanes over the past three years. If he can help the Leafs like he did the Hurricanes, there is no doubt he will make a difference, so I don’t see a reason not to be excited about this change.
This isn’t much of a surprising announcement, but more a positive one, especially compared to what the Senators and Oilers announced yesterday.
Still No News for the Montreal Canadiens
However, there is still no news about the Canadiens. I keep expecting to wake up and either see Ducharme’s interim tag removed or Corey Perry re-signed with the team. But, now I wonder, do the Canadiens have other priorities in mind? And if so, what are they?
All we can do is wait and see, and hope the Canadiens don’t do anything as unexpected as some of their fellow Canadian teams.