Few people should have had a Jacques Martin return to Ottawa on their bingo card at the start of the season, but the Senators relived the best moments of their past by rebranding the Franco-Ontarian head coach.
The 71-year-old hasn't held the position since 2011, when the Montreal Canadiens replaced him with Randy Cunneyworth midway through the season. His last term at the helm of “Sens” was even further back, from 1996 to 2004.
“It's special to be back after so long, but I still have the love, the passion and even the energy for this sport. I like being alongside players to see how they improve and progress. That’s our goal: We want to get better every day,” said the man who temporarily replaced DJ Smith at a press conference on Tuesday.
Steve Staios, director of hockey operations, praised Martin's qualities on Monday. In his opinion, the career coach has the character of reviving training without inspiration.
“I’m excited about our ice hockey team,” said the new pilot. I love our youth, I love our enthusiasm, our energy and our abilities. I think there are some aspects to work on, it's a process, but I'm looking forward to this new challenge.”
“We have to manage the games better,” added Martin. There are ups and downs in a meeting and we need to be able to calm the storm. We need to improve special teams and pay attention to details. You have to read the game and react.”
With “Alfie”
The trainer from Ottawa is not alone on the bench, as Daniel Alfredsson will accompany him as an assistant. Thanks to Martin, the Swede established himself in the National League and is undoubtedly the most important player in the history of the organization.
“I am very happy to have Daniel on my team. He brings interesting elements, he's a member of the Hall of Fame and has been close to this group this season. He is very respected and well informed,” he explained.
“I have known Jacques for a long time. “I know what is important to him and what message he wants to send,” Alfredsson replied. We had great success and made the playoffs year after year. This doesn’t happen if you don’t pay attention to the details and everyone plays for each other.”
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“Alfie” received his baptism of fire behind the Senators bench in November during the team’s trip to Sweden. He quickly realized that it was a different story, but he is tackling this new challenge with enthusiasm.
“You are in the middle of the action. You can see how quickly things happen and how quickly decisions have to be made. I enjoy it in a different way than when I'm sitting upstairs. It's easy to observe because everything seems to be slower. Proximity is the best thing after being a player,” he smiled.
The two sidekicks were quickly sent into the deep end when Ottawa took on the Coyotes in Arizona on Tuesday night.