Luke Richardson is the new head coach of the Chicago Blackhawks, where he inherits the mission to carry out a delicate reconstruction process.
General manager Kyle Davidson confirmed the hire on Monday. Richardson replaces Derek King, who completed the season as interim head coach after Jeremy Colliton was fired Nov. 6.
Richardson, 53, played with six teams during his 21-year NHL career, finishing with 35 goals and 166 assists in 1,417 games.
The Toronto Maple Leafs claimed the defenseman 7th overall in the 1987 draft.
Richardson played his first NHL game at Chicago Stadium on October 8, 1987, in a 7-5 win over the Maple Leafs.
“I am honored to have this opportunity to lead the Chicago Blackhawks, one of the original six teams,” Richardson said in the team statement.
“I plan to create a climate of confidence in this team. With trust, relationships will be formed and grow, allowing everyone to flourish and fulfill their role. My philosophy is to be better today than we were yesterday and to achieve that we will need commitment and consistency. »
Richardson retired as a player at the end of the 2008-09 season and joined the Ottawa Senators coaching staff. He was the Senators’ AHL branch head coach from 2012 to 2016.
Richardson, originally from Ottawa, has also served as an assistant on the Montreal Canadiens coaching staff for the past four seasons. When Dominique Ducharme was diagnosed with COVID-19 in the 2021 playoffs, Richardson took over as coach for six games and helped guide the Canadiens to their first Stanley Cup Final since 1993.
“I want to wish Luke the best of luck in his next professional challenge with the Blackhawks. Luke was completely dedicated to the cause of our team, and he has played an important role in recent years. We thank him for his work with us and for his dedication,” said Montreal club general manager Kent Hughes.
The Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup in 2010, 2013 and 2015, but the team has fallen on hard times in recent years. She started last season with ambitions of making the playoffs, but got off to a poor 1-9-2 start en route to a 28-42-12 record and a seventh-place finish in the middle section.
Longtime chief executive Stan Bowman resigned in October following a report by an outside law firm that found the organization mishandled allegations that an assistant coach had sexually assaulted a player during the team’s run into the playoffs in 2010.
Davidson was promoted to acting before being officially appointed on March 1. Norm Maciver joined management as associate managing director in March, and Jeff Greenberg was hired in the same position in April.
Richardson’s team in Chicago could present a very different face compared to last season. There are many question marks and the team could lose up to three headliners if the decision is made to trade Patrick Kane, Alex DeBrincat and Jonathan Toews for up-and-coming young players.
But Richardson’s first task will likely be to assemble his team of deputies. King, who guided the Blackhawks to a 27-33-10 record, is well regarded within the organization and could stay on as an assistant.