David Krejci will be playing under a new head coach in his first season with the Boston Bruins following a year away from the organization.
Bruce Cassidy was on the bench for the last four-plus seasons of Krejci’s Bruins tenure before the veteran pivot decided to return home and play in the Czech Republic. The B’s elected to move on from Cassidy less than a month after their 2022 Stanley Cup Playoff first-round loss to the Carolina Hurricanes, and they replaced the 2019-20 Jack Adams Award winner with Jim Montgomery.
Krejci met with the media Tuesday, one day after his new one-year contract with the Bruins was made official. The 36-year-old center was asked if a change at the helm factored into his decision to return to Boston.
“That would be a good story if I said yes, but no, my decision was made before they hired the new coach,” Krejci told reporters. “The firing of Butchy had nothing to do with my decision coming back.”
We imagine the return of Patrice Bergeron played a part in Krejci deciding to put a black-and-gold sweater back on. The Bruins captain himself is eager to reunite with his longtime teammate and fellow 2011 Stanley Cup winner.
