ST. LOUIS – The Jim Montgomery coaching era starts on a high note for the St. Louis Blues.
On Monday, his first full day at the helm, the Blues rallied for a come-from-behind 5-2 road victory over the New York Rangers.
Motgomery’s triumphant debut as the Blues head coach also represents a full-circle moment of extents in his professional hockey journey. Montgomery broke into the NHL scene as a player with the Blues in 1993. He also served as an assistant under former Blues head coach Craig Berube for two years from 2020 to 2022, in between stints as head coach for the Dallas Stars and Boston Bruins.
Montgomery is also a man of many witty and captivating remarks, as seen in Monday’s pregame and postgame comments. Here’s a closer look at how he reflected on Day 1 of the job.
T-bone steaks
Montgomery described Blues general manager Doug Armstrong as very persuasive in arranging a return to the Blues, less than a week after he departed the Bruins. He also shared a laugh about Armstrong’s appetite for the opportunity.
“The best line that put his hooks into me was ‘When something delicious falls on my plate, I eat.’ So, I don’t know, I guess I was a T-bone that day,” said Montgomery.
Lucky sweatshirt
Montgomery, during Monday’s pregame media introductions, wore a St. Louis Blues sweatshirt he had kept from his previous assistant coaching gig with the team and said it was special.
“It was in the closet. Once a Blue, always a blue,” said Montgomery.
St. Louis spirit
Montgomery emphasized the importance of connecting the team’s passionate blue-collar fan base and taking pride in the present, past and future of the Blues franchise.
“Blues fans are incredible, and they’re a blue-collar town, and they want to see a blue-collar team. That’s the most important thing that we got to establish is being a blue-collar team that the city and fans are proud of, whether it goes back through players, through Kelly Chase, Al MaCinnis, Bernie Federko. There are so many [former Blues players] that have stayed in St. Louis. They’re part of the fiber of the culture. And that’s what it means to be a Blue,” said Montgomery.”
The people
In his opening remarks to media as head coach, Montgomery says the opportunity with the Blues was about building upon strong relationships he has established. He had worked with around half of the Blues’ current roster during his previous stretch in St. Louis. He also feels the front office is committed to turning the franchise into a perennial force.
“For me, this decision was about people. I always believe you align yourselves with good people that you believe. For me, with Tom Stillman and the ownership group, it starts there. I appreciate the confidence and their vision. And Doug Armstrong is someone that was really important to my second chance, and I think he’s elite at what he does. His vision, his plan for how the Blues are going to become a consistently elite team again, is something I want to align myself with … I know how invested they are. It’s great to come to the rink with people that are trying to push to be the best version they can be.”
Postgame speech to team
After Monday’s 5-2 victory, Montgomery praised the Blues for their effort and resilience to fend off a challenging opponent in the Rangers.
“Hey, great job. I mean, man, was that fun to watch,” said Montgomery in a video the Blues shared on social media. “You know what I liked best? The sacrifices, blocked shots. The end of the second period, we stuck together. They were six, we were six. They were seven, we were eight. That’s the way you play for each other. That was fun to watch. Great display offensively. Great work coming back. We have work to do. It’s a great start, though. That’s all it is, a start. We got a lot of work to do. We’re going to be a good hockey team.”