Montreal Canadiens general manager, Marc Bergevin, announced that the team’s head coach, Claude Julien, has been sent to the hospital. Bergevin revealed it was not related to COVID-19, and that Kirk Muller will take over the head coaching job for the remainder of the First Round of the playoffs.
UPDATE: Julien has been discharged from the hospital and is headed home to Montreal to recover. He will not return this series.
Canadiens head coach Claude Julien is returning to Montreal to rest following stenting of a coronary artery.https://t.co/FRa6P4fR26
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) August 14, 2020
Claude Julien Sent to the Hospital
The 60-year-old coach was sent to the hospital last night with chest pains. The incident came after a 2-1 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers in the first game of their best-of-seven series. General manager, Marc Bergevin, has told the media that the incident is not related to the COVID-19 virus. The coach will not return to his role with the team for the remainder of the round-one matchup. In Julien’s absence, associate coach Kirk Muller will presume coaching responsibilities through the rest of the series. Under normal circumstances, Muller would be in charge of running the team’s power play.
Muller, 54, is a Stanley Cup Winner with the 1992-93 Canadiens. Along with playing in Montreal, Muller was a member of the New Jersey Devils, Dallas Stars, Florida Panthers, New York Islanders, and the Toronto Maple Leafs. In 1,349 NHL games played over his 19- year career, he scored 357 goals and 602 assists for a total of 959 points
What This Means For The Future
Julien is leaving the league’s bubble in Toronto. Thus, he will have to quarantine for seven days and produce four negative COVID-19 tests. Once he has been cleared by the league, he will be able to rejoin the team and resume his coaching duties. Regardless of how speedily he recovers, it looks like Muller will be the face of the Montreal Canadians’ bench for the next few games. The team plays their second game against the Philadelphia Flyers on Friday, August 14th at 3 PM eastern standard time.
The team’s head coaching responsibilities are in good hands.
Main Photo:
