The Maple Leafs have hired Guy Boucher and Mike Van Ryn as assistant coaches, the Toronto organization announced in a statement Thursday morning.
They will join assistants Dean Chynoweth and Manny Malhotra, goalie coach Curtis Sanford, and video coaches Jordan Bean and Sam Kim on the staff that will support Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe.
“Following the departure of Spencer Carbery, who became head coach of the Washington Capitals, I was excited to add experienced and seasoned coaches such as Guy and Mike to my staff,” Keefe said.
Boucher, 51, was the head coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning from 2010 to 2013, and the Ottawa Senators from 2016 to 2019 — he compiled a 191-186-46 record as a head coach in the Bettman circuit. Under Boucher, the Lightning notably reached the Eastern Conference Finals in 2011. He also led the Senators to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2017.
Before joining the Senators, the Quebecer had spent three seasons in Switzerland (from 2013 to 2016), where he acted as head coach of SC Bern, in the Swiss A League. The team compiled a 44-29-5 record under his leadership.
Boucher also coached the Montreal Canadiens in the American Hockey League in 2009-10, leading them to a 52-17-11 record. And he made his mark in the junior ranks, notably being head coach of the Voltigeurs de Drummondville (2006 to 2009) — he also contributed to their conquest of the Gilles-Courteau trophy, awarded to the champion team of the QMJHL, in 2008-09 — and assistant coach of the Océanic de Rimouski (2004 to 2006) and the Huskies de Rouyn-Noranda (2 000-01).
Van Ryn, 44, joins the Maple Leafs after serving as an assistant coach with the St. Louis Blues for five seasons, from 2018 to 2023. Van Ryn notably won the Stanley Cup with the Blues in 2019.