Montreal Canadiens fire general manager Marc Bergevin as team struggles

The Montreal Canadiens have fired general manager Marc Bergevin.

The Canadiens also let go assistant general manager Trevor Timmins and senior vice-president of communications Paul Wilson, the team announced Sunday afternoon.

Montreal announced that Jeff Gorton will serve as executive vice president of hockey operations as the team searches for a new general manager.

Bergevin was in the final year of his contract with the Canadiens, who have struggled on the ice this season.

Montreal is seventh in the Atlantic Division with a 6-15-2 record, just a few months after reaching the Stanley Cup final.

The Habs are ahead of only the New York Islanders and Ottawa Senators in the Eastern Conference standings.

The 56-year-old Bergevin was hired as GM of the Canadiens on May 2, 2012.

In a statement shared by the team, Bergevin thanked several people who helped make his “dream” of working for the Canadiens come true, including owner Geoff Molson.

“The last years have been high in both emotions and learnings,” said Bergevin. “You have witnessed my journey leading the organization. You won’t be surprised to hear me say it has not been a long, quiet river, and at times, it felt like we were living in a TV show. Despite the challenges, the organization I led with passion always fought back. For me, each experience, good or bad, made me a better leader.

“Montreal is the city where I took my first skating strides and it’s also the city where I learned to lead the NHL’s winningest franchise. This city and this organization will always have a special place in my heart.”

Bergevin said he is proud of the legacy he is leaving behind.

Bergevin’s long-term status with the team had been a question since he entered the season on an expiring contract.

Still, this wasn’t the start to the season the Canadiens were expecting as the team went into the campaign fresh off an unexpected run to their first Cup final appearance since winning it all in 1993.

Backed by the stellar goaltending of Carey Price, the Canadiens came back from a 3-1 deficit to upset the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round of the playoffs. They followed with a sweep of Winnipeg in the North Division final and a win over Vegas in the conference final before losing to two-time Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay in the final.

Instead, the Canadiens had an off-season to forget and started the campaign without the talismanic Price and captain and defensive stalwart Shea Weber in the lineup.

Price voluntarily entered the joint NHL and NHL Players’ Association’s assistance program during training camp. Price’s has since revealed he entered a residential treatment facility for substance use. Weber, meanwhile, is on the long-term injury reserve list with a foot/ankle injury and could be out for the entire season.

The challenges started even before that, with Bergevin losing two of his four centres in free agency.

In a surprising off-season development, Bergevin let restricted free agent Jesperi Kotkaniemi walk after declining to match the one-year US$6.1-million offer sheet the promising young forward signed with Carolina.

The six-foot-two, 201-pound Kotkaniemi, taken third overall by Montreal in the 2018 NHL draft, had five goals and 15 assists in 56 regular-season games last season. He added five goals and three assists in 19 playoff contests.

“The amount of money on a one-year deal for a player who should be making a lot less, it could affect our future,” Bergevin said at the time. “We have a structure, our salary cap that we need to work with. And we have some young players coming through that we want to keep.”

The Canadiens also lost Phillip Danault to the Los Angeles Kings in unrestricted free agency. In order to soften the blow, Bergevin acquired 25-year-old forward Christian Dvorak from Arizona in exchange for a conditional 2022 first-round pick and a 2024 second-round pick.

With files from The Canadian Press.