Bruce Boudreau

Infobox Ice Hockey Player


image_size =
position = Centre
played_for = Toronto Maple Leafs
Chicago Black Hawks
Minnesota Fighting Saints
shot = Left
height_ft = 5
height_in = 9
weight_lb = 170
nationality = CAN
birth_date = birth date and age|1955|01|09
birth_place = Toronto, Ontario, CAN
career_start = 1976
career_end = 1992

Bruce Allan Boudreau (born January 9, 1955 in Toronto, Ontario) is the current head coach of the Washington Capitals and the most recent recipient of the Jack Adams Award. As a player, Boudreau played professionally for 20 seasons, logging 141 games in the National Hockey League and 30 games in the World Hockey Association. He played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Chicago Black Hawks, and Minnesota Fighting Saints.

Playing career

While Boudreau's major professional career was modest, he had a long career in the minor leagues, and was one of the most prolific minor league scorers of all time, largely in the American Hockey League. His junior career was spent with the Toronto Marlboros of the Ontario Hockey Association, for which he averaged over a hundred points a season. He scored 165 points in his final season in juniors, adding 44 points in 27 games en route to captaining the Marlies to a Memorial Cup championship.

After being drafted in the third round, 42nd overall, by the Toronto Maple Leafs, he could not agree with Toronto on a contract and joined the Minnesota Fighting Saints of the World Hockey Association, making his professional debut in 1975.

Spending most of the early part of his professional career with Maple Leaf farm teams in Dallas, New Brunswick and St. Catharines, Boudreau also spent significant time playing for the Springfield Indians (for whom he won his only scoring championship, in 1988), the Fort Wayne Komets and the Nova Scotia Oilers. His most significant NHL time came in 1981, when as an injury replacement he scored ten goals and fourteen assists in only 39 games.

He remained a minor league star and top scorer right through his final season in 1992. His final game came in Springfield, where he had been signed by the Adirondack Red Wings as an emergency injury replacement during their first round Calder Cup playoff series against the Indians.

Playing achievements and facts

* Boudreau remains the 14th leading all-time goal scorer in the AHL with 316, also currently 11th in assists with 483 and 11th in points with 799. For the minor leagues as a whole, Boudreau is 8th all time with 1368 points, and 13th in both goals and assists with 548 and 820 respectively; he is in the top twenty-five all time scorers for professional hockey.

* While playing for the Johnstown (PA) Jets early in his career, Boudreau had a minor role in the hit hockey movie "Slap Shot", appearing briefly wearing the green sweater (#7) of the opposing Presidents against the Hanson brothers' Chiefs.

* Scored 100 points or more for five separate minor league teams.

* Named to the Central Hockey League's Second All-Star Team in 1982.

* Named to the American Hockey League's First All-Star Team in 1988.

Coaching career

After his playing days were over he began a highly successful coaching career. In the minor leagues, Boudreau has coached the Muskegon Fury, the Fort Wayne Komets, the Mississippi Sea Wolves, the Lowell Lock Monsters, the Manchester Monarchs and the Hershey Bears.

Under Boudreau's leadership, the Bears won the 2006 American Hockey League Calder Cup championship. The Bears made it all the way back to the Calder Cup finals under Coach Boudreau again in 2007, ultimately falling to the Hamilton Bulldogs.

Previously, Boudreau coached the Mississippi Sea Wolves to the ECHL Championship in 1999, and also led the Fort Wayne Komets to the IHL Finals in 1994.

Boudreau was named interim head coach of the NHL's Washington Capitals on November 22, 2007, and later their permanent coach on December 26. He compiled a 37–17–7 rookie coaching record with a team that was 6–14–1 when he inherited it. Under Boudreau's leadership, the 2007–08 Capitals won their first Southeast Division title in seven years and made the playoffs for the first time in five years. He won the Jack Adams Award as the NHL's best coach in 2008. [http://blog.washingtonpost.com/capitalsinsider/2008/06/ovechkins_trophy_haul_has_begu.html#comments]

Coaching record

References

*hockeydb|502
*legendsofhockey|10143
* [http://capitals.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NHLPage&id=19312 Washington Capitals profile]

ee also

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