Bruins Brief: Montgomery Fired; Grim Updates on Ovechkin, Matthews Injuries

Good morning, my name is Andrew Fantucchio. It’s Wednesday, November 20, and here are the top stories, news items, and highlights surrounding the Boston Bruins and from across the NHL today.

Bruins Fire Jim Montgomery:

Jim Montgomery was fired from his position as the head coach of the Boston Bruins on Tuesday following a disappointing 8-9-3 start to the season.

In two and a half years with the Bruins, Montgomery compiled a 120-41-23 overall record across two and half seasons. He made the playoffs in each of his two full years with the club, including in 2022-23, when he led the Bruins to the best regular season in NHL history and won the Jack Adams Award as the league’s best head coach that year.

It’s almost unfathomable that after such a successful start to his tenure in Boston, Montgomery was so quickly let go. But the fact of the matter is, even though Montgomery is gone, the Bruins’ biggest issues still remain.

The most alarming of which is the overall lack of accountability among the team. Sure, after every game the players say that they admit that they’re playing poorly and know they need to improve, but they never do.

The Bruins have a culture problem, and it’s crumbling them from the inside out.

Ovechkin, Matthews Injury Updates:

A magical season for the Washington Capitals has come to a screeching halt as Alex Ovechkin is week-to-week with a lower-leg injury.

Ovechkin, 39, had posted 15 goals and was well on his way to breaking Wayne Gretzky’s all-time career goals record before getting hurt on Monday night in Utah.

At least is the good news for the Capitals is that they know approximately when Ovechkin will return. The Toronto Maple Leafs cannot say the same when it comes to Auston Matthews.

Matthews has missed the last six games with an undisclosed injury. The Maple Leafs star was originally listed as day-to-day but has now missed the last two weeks of action with no signs of an imminent return.

To further add to the mystery, Matthews reportedly traveled all the way to Germany to seek treatment from a clinic he’s seen in the past.

Yesterday’s Scoreboard:

Jets: 6, Panthers: 3

Oilers: 5, Senators: 2

Lightning: 3, Penguins: 2 (OT)

Rangers: 4, Canucks: 3

Flames: 2, Islanders: 1 (SO)

Wild: 4, Blues: 2

Ducks: 3, Blackhawks: 2

Today’s Schedule:

All Times EST

Vegas Golden Knights v. Toronto Maple Leafs, 7:30 p.m.

Carolina Hurricanes v. Philadelphia Flyers, 7:30 p.m.

San Jose Sharks v. Dallas Stars, 8 p.m.

Nashville Predators v. Seattle Kraken, 10 p.m.

Buffalo Sabres v. Los Angeles Kings, 10:30 p.m.

More From National Hockey Now:

Detroit: A winless trip through California has the Detroit Red Wings spinning in a downward spiral.

Montreal: Don’t look now, but the downtrodden Montreal Canadiens are on the upswing.

Philadelphia: Veteran defenseman Erik Johnson is proving there is value to leadership with the Philadelphia Flyers.

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