Jets Coach Chirps ‘Dr.’ Jim Montgomery As Blues Series Gets Chippy

It’s been a strange year for Jim Montgomery, who, after starting his season in Boston, now finds himself in the middle of a war of words amid a nasty Blues-Jets first-round series.

Montgomery’s Blues are on the ropes after a Game 5 loss in Winnipeg on Wednesday night. The Jets won 5-3, pushing St. Louis to the brink in the Stanley Cup playoffs first-round series.

The outcome of Game 5 took a slight backseat, at least in the postgame, to a brewing war of words between Montgomery and Jets coach Scott Arniel. The latter expressed frustration with how the Blues have toed the line in the series, something he believes was on full display in Game 5.

Blues center Brayden Schenn unloaded on Jets center Mark Scheifele early in the first period. The captain-on-captain crime sparked a mini spat between the two teams after the Jets came to Scheifele’s defense. Referees gave Schenn two minutes for interference and another two for roughing based on what happened after the whistle.

Scheifele stayed in the game, at least momentarily. He was then on the wrong end of another big hit, this one from St. Louis center Radek Faksa later in the period.

When the game resumed after the first intermission, Scheifele did not. He didn’t play in the second and third periods, and the series of events sparked a conversation among the two coaches and officials.

Montgomery confirmed the conference was over the Schenn hit — Winnipeg believed there should have been more than just the minor — and Montgomery took an opportunity to editorialize a bit.

“Yes, (the conference) was about the Schenn hit, and let’s make it clear: 55 (Scheifele) got hurt from the Faksa hit,” Montgomery said to reporters in a postgame press conference. “He played six minutes after the Schenn hit. He didn’t come back after he got rocked by Faksa.”

While Montgomery was largely defending his player, coaches and players talking publicly about opponents in that manner typically doesn’t go over well.

Enter Arniel.

“I didn’t know Monty got his medical degree, trying to say how our player got hurt,” Arniel quipped shortly after in his presser. “He’s way off base. He should not make that comment.”

Arniel also used the moment to lobby.

“There are some things that have been going on in this series, and that was a repeat of what we’ve seen before, a player leaving his feet and hitting a player in a very unprotective spot — almost blindsiding him.

“Not happy how the call was made, a two-minute minor, not even looking at it was what I was upset about. It is something that we have talked to the league about for five games.”

Bruins fans won’t be surprised to see and hear Montgomery making headlines. The veteran head coach has used the podium to deliver various messages, particularly during the playoffs, and this is no different.

Ultimately, though, Montgomery’s focus must return to the ice where the Blues will try to stave off elimination in Game 6 on Friday night in St. Louis.