Montreal Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis hires his former coach

NHL training camps are just a little over a week away, and the Montreal Canadiens have announced changes to their Hockey Operations Department heading into the 2024-25 season. One of the changes includes hiring a former coach of Habs head coach Martin St. Louis.

Roger Grillo has been hired as coach consultant and will join Martin St-Louis' staff immediately. Grillo and St. Louis are well acquainted as Grillo served as an assistant coach with the University of Vermont's men's hockey team while St. Louis was playing there.

Roger Grillo is a former player at the NCAA level and brings a wealth of coaching experience to the Montreal Canadiens organization. He's also served as a Director of Player Development with USA Hockey.

As for the other changes made by the Montreal Canadiens, Albie O'Connell has been promoted to Chief North American scout and Tommy Lehman has been promoted to Chief European scout. Additionally, Matt Ryan has been hired as Pro scout. Dale Lablans has been promoted to head of performance, Stéphane Gervais has been hired as strength and conditioning coach, and Mitch Freeburn will replace Gervais in Laval as the Rocket's strength coach.

The Montreal Canadiens head into the 2024-25 season hoping to show that the team's rebuild is working, and that the young talent acquired over the past few years is ready to make the next step and possibly compete for a playoff spot. Martin St. Louis has been pegged as the man capable of getting the best out of his young players, and he'll need to build on that reputation this season in order to be successful.