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The Boston Bruins have relieved head coach Bruce Cassidy of his duties, the club announced Monday afternoon.
Cassidy, 57, had served as Bruins head coach since replacing Claude Julien midway through the 2016–17 regular season. He led the team to a 51–26–5 record in 2021–22, good for fourth place in the Atlantic Division.
The Bruins subsequently lost in seven games to the Carolina Hurricanes in the first round of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
“Today I informed Bruce Cassidy that I was making a head coaching change,” Bruins general manager Don Sweeney said in the club’s press release on Monday. “After 14 years working with Bruce, this was an extremely difficult decision.
“I want to thank and acknowledge Bruce for all his work and success with the Bruins organization. His head coaching record for the Bruins is impressive, and we are appreciative of Bruce both professionally and personally. After taking some time to fully digest everything, I felt that the direction of our team for both this season and beyond would benefit from a new voice.”
Cassidy served as a coach with the American Hockey League’s Providence Bruins from 2007–08 to 2015–16 before being named an assistant coach in Boston for 2016–17. He finished that season as the Bruins’ interim head coach and was named the permanent bench boss in April 2017.
In his six years with the Bruins, Cassidy led the team to a 245–108–46 record in the regular season. He helped the team make the 2019 Stanley Cup Final, where they lost to the St. Louis Blues in seven games.
Before joining the Bruins organization, Cassidy served as the head coach of the Jaromir Jagr-led Washington Capitals for the 2002–03 season and part of 2003–04.
The Bruins said they would immediately commence a search for their new head coach. Assistant coaches Joe Sacco, Chris Kelly, and Kevin Dean were not impacted by Monday’s coaching change.
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