Washington (AFP) – Travis Green, ex-coach of the Vancouver Canucks, was named coach of the NHL’s Ottawa Senators on Tuesday while Drew Bannister signed a two-year deal to guide the St.Louis Blues.
Green had been serving as the interim coach of the New Jersey Devils. He closed the season 8-12 with one overtime loss after replacing the fired Lindy Ruff on March 4. The 53-year-old Canadian had coached the Canucks from 2017-21, going 133-147-34 and reaching the playoffs in 2020 before being fired after an 8-15-2 start in the 2021-22 campaign.
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Green will be tasked with trying to revive the struggling Senators, who have missed the playoffs for seven consecutive seasons. He replaced Jacques Martin, who went 26-26-4 after replacing D.J.Smith as coach last December, the team finishing at 37-41-4 overall.
“After speaking to several highly qualified candidates, it became clear that Travis is the right fit to lead our group,” Senators general manager Steve Staios said. “Developing a winning culture is paramount to our aspiration of achieving sustained success. Travis has a burning desire to win, is passionate about teaching and holds his players to a very high standard.”
Martin will continue with the Senators as a consultant. “It was on the work on the backs of Jacques Martin and the coaching staff,” Staios said. “As far as looking for that stability and that next layer for us to continue to build this program on, I do feel good about that.” Martin had gone 341-235-20 as coach of the Senators from 1996-2004.
Bannister, a 50-year-old Canadian, went 30-19-5 as interim coach for the Blues after Craig Berube was fired last December. The Blues finished 43-33-6 but missed the Stanley Cup playoffs for the second year in a row. It will be the first NHL coaching position for Bannister, who played from 1995-2001 in the NHL for Tampa Bay, Edmonton, Anaheim and the New York Rangers.
The NHL has four head coaching vacancies, including New Jersey, Seattle, San Jose, and Winnipeg.
© 2024 AFP
