Senators fire Boucher, promote Crawford to interim HC

The Ottawa Senators fired head coach Guy Boucher on Friday, the team announced. Associate coach Marc Crawford will take over on an interim basis.

Boucher took the Senators on a miracle run to the conference finals in his first season behind the bench but couldn't replicate that success in the following two years.

Crawford has served as an associate coach with the Senators since Boucher was hired prior to the 2016-17 season. He ranks 22nd all time with 549 wins as an NHL head coach, winning a Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche in 1995-96. His last head coaching job was a two-year stint with the Dallas Stars from 2009-2011.

Chris Kelly, who suited up in 545 games with the Senators during his playing career, has been added to Crawford's coaching staff.

The Senators will conduct a search for a new head coach after the season and have specific qualities in mind:

- A teacher who will focus on the development and growth of each player on the team;

- A listener who encourages feedback from players and the coaching staff;

- A communicator who lets every team member know where they stand and what is expected;

- A tactician who brings structure and game planning that will enhance our rebuild.

The Senators sit dead last in the NHL and traded away their three leading goalscorers - Matt Duchene, Mark Stone, and Ryan Dzingel - before the deadline.

Boucher's only other head coaching gig with the Tampa Bay Lightning followed a similar pattern to his stint in Ottawa: a conference final berth in the first season, significant regression in the second, and a coaching change midway through the third.