Story by
Former Penguins Coach Retires
- Story by
- Former Penguins Coach Retires
Former Penguins Coach Retires
The coach who took the Pittsburgh Penguins from a disorganized rebuild to a cohesive young troop ready to win a Stanley Cup has retired.
Michel Therrien, who previously coached the Montreal Canadiens before going to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins for the 2004 and 2005 seasons, and then was elevated to the NHL team in December of 2005, is retiring.
Advertisement
Therrien, 61, made the announcement on Montreal radio, where he has worked for the last three years.
"I think I've reached that point in my life," said Therrien. I had a good conversation this week with Louis-Philippe Neveu at TVA, who treated me very well during those three wonderful years … I had been thinking about it for a few months, and then when you feel that you need to move on to another stage, you have to do it."
Therrien's WBS Penguins began the 2005 season 21-1-2 before he got the call to the NHL. While he could be a stern taskmaster, he united the team of young players, culminating in a Stanley Cup Final appearance in 2008.
However, Therrien's Penguins tenure came to a close in the middle of the following season as the young team had begun to revolt, and he was replaced by Dan Bylsma.
In his three-plus seasons with the Penguins, he was 132-105-32. The Penguins were 15-10 in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Advertisement
Following his termination, he returned to Montreal in 2012-13 and coached four more seasons, his last being 2016-17. Therrien also coached the Montreal Canadiens from 2000-01 to midway through the 2002-03 season.
Overall, Therrien coached 814 NHL games with a 406-303-23 (ties)-82 (overtime losses).
The post Former Penguins Coach Retires appeared first on Pittsburgh Hockey Now .
Related Headlines
