Jacques Martin was named senior adviser to the coaching staff by the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday. 
The 71-year-old coached the Senators from Jan. 24, 1996 – April 22, 2004 and is the longest-tenured coach in their history. He was 341-255-96 in the regular season with Ottawa.
“We’re very pleased to welcome Jacques back to the Senators,” interim general manager Steve Staios said. “Not only will his extensive expertise provide invaluable guidance, but his strategic vision and leadership are qualities that are certain to amplify our group. Jacques’ proven track record, the foundation of which was built here in Ottawa, will be of significant benefit to D.J. and our entire coaching staff.”
The Senators (10-10-0) have won two in a row but struggled to start the season after expectations to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs. That has put coach D.J. Smith on the hot seat. Smith is in his fifth season as Senators coach and is 130-149-32 in 311 games, missing the playoffs his first four seasons.
Owner Michael Andlauer told NHL.com on Monday that he wanted to avoid making hasty decisions in the wake of a disappointing start.
“It’s a process,” Andlauer said. “I’m the new boss. I’m looking at all our key employees and trying to understand and making sure that they have the right tools to be successful. But I can feel the fans’ angst.”
Martin remains the Senators’ leader in games coached (692), regular-season wins, Stanley Cup Playoff wins (31) and playoff games coached (69). He won the Jack Adams Award as the NHL coach of the year in 1998-99, when the Senators were 44-23-13 and won the Northeast Division for the first time in their history.
He’s coached 1,294 regular-season games for the Senators, St. Louis Blues, Florida Panthers and Montreal Canadiens, 17th most in NHL history. Martin is 613-481-81 with 119 ties all-time and is 22nd on the League’s wins list.
You must be logged in to post a comment.