Blues fire Bannister, hire Montgomery as coach

The St. Louis Blues have fired coach Drew Bannister and hired Jim Montgomery as his replacement just five days after the 2022 Jack Adams Award winner was let go by the Boston Bruins.

President and general manager Doug Armstrong announced the stunning change Sunday.

Bannister had been on the job in St. Louis for less than a year since succeeding Stanley Cup-winning coach Craig Berube and getting the interim tag removed after last season. The Blues have lost 13 of their first 22 games.

Montgomery spent two seasons as an assistant on Berube’s staff in St. Louis between coaching Dallas and Boston. The Bruins fired him less than a quarter of the way through the season given their rough start.

The Blues signed Montgomery to a five-year contract.