The Blues fell into a stroke of luck when head coach Jim Montgomery became available last season. Monty was only a season and a half removed from leading the winningest team in the regular season ever and winning the Jack Adams trophy, the award given out to the best coach in the NHL.
The Jim Montgomery era of Blues hockey has already had its ups and downs, but there is reason to be high on what could be for next season. A full offseason of work under the head coach of the future should help players adjust to the new system better, and the Blues should be looking to start the season hungry
A proven track record
It seems like everything Jim Montgomery touches turns to gold. In his first stint with the Blues as an assistant coach under Craig Berube, Montgomery oversaw the penalty kill and helped with general coaching duties, learning from Chief. He coached up an excellent PK unit that was consistently top 10 in the league and helped the Blues lead some very impressive special teams.
His loss to Boston was felt immediately, as the Blues suffered their worst season in a long time in the 2022-23 season, the same season Boston went on to set the record for points in the regular season with Monty at the helm.
Boston also had strong special teams under Monty, and dominated the NHL at the height of his tenure. One of their calling cards to success in the regular season was their ability to get out to a hot start; in his last full season in Boston, Monty led the Bruins to a 6-game winning streak to start the season and a 15-4-3 record after the first two months of play.
Jim Montgomery has a proven track record of starting out hot and carrying that momentum through the regular season. His time in Boston proved he was a good to great head coach, but his time in St. Louis showed something even further beyond.
A successful tenure with the Blues
Once Jim Montgomery took over the Blues on November 25, the team never looked back, roaring to a 35-18-7 record and a playoff berth.
Furthermore, the Blues elevated their level of play into true contention after the Four Nations Face-Off tournament. The team earned 41 points with a record of 19-4-3 after the break, the highest mark in the NHL. Post Four Nations, there was no better-run team in the league than Jim Montgomery's Blues.
Monty led the team with great special-teams play again, but this time he found out how to dominate the 5v5 game as well. His few years of head coaching experience mean he is still developing as a head coach, and it's possible he cracked the code to win at 5-on-5 just last season.
The St. Louis Blues have lofty expectations set for the upcoming season, and Jim Montgomery is a large component of that. What he was able to turn the Blues into in just a half season's worth of games was a force to be reckoned with, and to get that level of performance again or even something near it would still mean the Blues are one of the best teams in the NHL.
For more discussion of Jim Montgomery and what he could mean to the Blues, check out the latest episode of my podcast, the Note News Podcast, where we also broke down the front office and goaltending expectations:
The fact is, Jim Montgomery is one of the best head coaches in the NHL. He has the chance to put his name forward as the best head coach of them all with another heroic performance behind the bench as the mastermind of a great Blues team.