It’s dressing room clear-out day for the Montreal Canadiens today, and as usual, we are finding out plenty of information about what happened in both the regular season and the playoffs.

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Unsurprisingly, one of the first questions asked of Samuel Montembeault was about the injury he sustained in the first-round series against the Washington Capitals. The netminder explained that he had torn two of the three muscles in his groin and that while he would have liked to continue, he just couldn’t.

The injury would have ruled him out for two weeks, meaning that he could have returned in the second round had the Canadiens made it, but it wasn’t to be. He will not need surgery to repair the damage, but it will prevent him from attending the World Championships.

The Becancour native never had such a busy season as he had this year. The masked man played in 62 games, which is almost twice his usual workload, and he can be proud of his accomplishments. He won 30 games for the first time in his career, with a 31-24-7 record, a 2.80 goals-against average, and a .902 save percentage. Before this season, he had only recorded a single shutout in the NHL, but he got four more this year.

I think Sam Montembeault's most impressive attribute is his puck tracking. He's one of the best in the NHL at it.

This huge save is a great example. I can't believe he tracked this through the traffic and was able to react to get his toe on the redirect. Awesome stuff. pic.twitter.com/6DRjvzSG6w

— Jesse Granger (@JesseGranger_) April 24, 2025

While he conceded that he lacked consistency at one point, he made the required adjustments and was an integral part of the Canadiens’ push for the playoffs. In an ideal world, Montembeault wouldn’t have been as busy, but Cayden Primeau’s struggles in the NHL left the organization with very few options.

Jakub Dobes’ arrival did help, but next season, if he is once again Montembeault’s backup, he will need to see more action to ensure that the number one isn’t overworked. We’ll never know, but perhaps if he didn’t have that big of a workload, he wouldn’t have sustained an injury in game three.

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The Chicago Blackhawks are in the market for a head coach. One option that was presented to the league last week, Mike Sullivan, is already off the board. Not even a week after being fired by the Pittsburgh Penguins, he has been hired by the New York Rangers. 

Sullivan will be the 38th head coach in New York Rangers history and will be the highest paid bench boss in NHL history. The fact that it happened this quickly makes you wonder if he was ever even available to anybody else. The Blackhawks likely never even had a chance. 

New York Rangers (@NYRangers) on XThe 38th Head Coach in #NYR history. Welcome (back) to Broadway, Sully!

With David Carle pulling his name out of the consideration hat, that is two top coaching candidates off the board. That does not mean that that the Blackhawks can’t make a good hire. It does mean that the hunt for the next great coach in franchise history continues. 

What is it that Sullivan would have brought to the table? Well, the thing that makes him the most unique out of every option is his championship pedigree. Coaches with multiple Stanley Cups don’t come around too often. 

With that said, the Blackhawks just need someone right now that will get the most out of young players. The search continues as Kyle Davidson is out there putting his best foot forward to make the right hire. 

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Former Vancouver Canucks assistant coach Mike Sullivan has a new home. After a decade with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Sullivan has agreed to become the next head coach of the New York Rangers. While details of the contract have not been released, it is rumoured to be a five-year deal that will make Sullivan the highest-paid coach in the NHL. 

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Due to his ties with the Canucks, Sullivan's name did come up when discussing who should replace Rick Tocchet. As mentioned, Sullivan did spend time as an assistant coach with the organization during the 2013-14 season and was named interim head coach during John Tortorella's six-game suspension. Sullivan also has ties to Jim Rutherford, as the two won multiple Stanley Cups with the Penguins.

Since his days in Vancouver, Sullivan has become one of the most successful coaches in the NHL. His regular-season record is 479-311-15-112, which ranks 32nd all-time. Sullivan was also named Head Coach of Team USA at the 4 Nations Face-Off and is projected to be behind the bench for the Americans at the 2026 Winter Olympics. 

With Sullivan off the board, the Canucks must turn their focus to other available coaches. While it was unlikely that Sullivan would have come to Vancouver, potentially adding him to the organization would have been a significant moment. Overall, it is a smart hire by the Rangers, who like the Canucks, are looking to get back into the playoffs in 2026. 

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Well, it's official.

After just four days on the open market as a head coaching option, ex-Pittsburgh Penguins bench boss Mike Sullivan has offically been named the 38th head coach in New York Rangers history.

The announcement came Friday morning via Rangers general manager Chris Drury.

New York Rangers Hire Coach Mike Sullivan: 'Mike Brings A Championship-Level Presence'The New York Rangers named Mike Sullivan their new coach on Friday.

“Mike Sullivan has established himself as one of the premier head coaches in the NHL,” Drury said in a statement. “Given his numerous accomplishments throughout his coaching career - including two Stanley Cups and leading Team USA at the international level – Mike brings a championship-level presence behind the bench.

"I’ve gotten to know Mike very well over the years, including as teammates in the 1997 World Championships, when he coached me as a player in New York and through our shared time working together with USA Hockey. As we began this process and Mike became an available option for us to speak with, it was immediately clear that he was the best coach to lead our team.”

After a decade at the helm, the Penguins and POHO/GM Kyle Dubas parted ways with Sullivan on Monday. In those 10 seasons with Pittsburgh, the team won back-to-back Stanley Cup championships in 2016 and 2017 and went 409-255-89 during the regular season. He is the winningest coach in Penguins' franchise history and is 15th all-time in coaching wins with a single franchise.

Sullivan was also head coach of the Boston Bruins from 2003-06, and he held subsequent assistant coaching gigs with the Tampa Bay Lightning, Rangers, and Vancouver Canucks. Prior to joining the Penguins organization in 2015, he was also a player development coach for the Chicago Blackhawks.

Sullivan's international experience aided in his hire, too, as he led Team USA during the 4 Nations Face-off tournament in February and will be the head coach of the men's hockey team at the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Milan, Italy. 

“I would like to welcome Mike back to the Rangers organization,” said James L. Dolan, Executive Chairman and CEO of MSG. “Mike’s track record and success in the NHL and internationally speaks for itself, and I look forward to seeing him behind the Rangers bench.”

According to a report by ESPN's Emily Kaplan, the contract is a five-year deal with the highest average annual value awarded to a head coach in NHL history.

'I Started To Think That It May Just Be Time': Takeaways From Kyle Dubas's Press Conference Regarding Departure Of Mike SullivanOn Monday,

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