It’s over between the Gatineau Olympiques and their head coach and general manager for the past three years, Louis Robitaille.
The two parties have “mutually agreed to part ways,” the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) team announced in a statement on Tuesday.
“Following discussions, the two parties decided that it was time to move on”, we write before thanking Robitaille for “his hard work and especially his involvement in the community”.
Louis Robitaille was named at the helm of the Olympiques in April 2020, when the organization was at its lowest. The team had just ended a disastrous season, finishing 16e rank with a meager harvest of 20 wins in 63 games. Nothing was going well between fans and the organization on the eve of a move to a brand new arena – the Slush Puppie Centre.
In 167 games over the past three seasons, the general manager and head coach maintained a record of 104-38-25. This spring, he led the team to the semi-finals of the playoffs, where they lost to the Quebec Remparts, who ultimately won the Gilles-Courteau Trophy.
Robitaille is the only one to leave; the status of assistant coaches Darren Rumble, Jean-Philippe Charbonneau, and Luc Therrien “remains unchanged until further notice,” we note. The process is already underway to find a new general manager and an assistant coach. The Outaouais club also indicates that the two positions will be occupied by two separate people, rather than one.
Until the choices are made, Jean-François Fortin, assistant to the general manager for three years, will act as interim general manager. Members of the organization are scheduled to meet the media Wednesday at 11 a.m. at the Slush Puppie Center.