Brad Larsen hired as Blue Jackets' head coach

Brad Larsen has been named head coach of the Columbus Blue Jackets, the team announced Thursday.

Larsen, who's the eighth bench boss in franchise history, succeeds John Tortorella. He has been with the organization since his playing career ended in 2010. Larsen worked with the AHL's Springfield Falcons for four years (two as assistant coach, two as head coach) before serving as an assistant with the Blue Jackets for the last seven seasons.

"We underwent an exhaustive process in which we looked very closely at a number of outstanding candidates to be the next coach of the Columbus Blue Jackets, and the one individual we kept coming back to throughout was Brad Larsen," said general manager Jarmo Kekalainen.

"Brad was one of the top young coaches in the American Hockey League when he joined our club as an assistant coach, and over the past seven years (he's) earned the respect of our players, staff, and organization with his work ethic, hockey acumen, and the way he treats people, and we couldn't be more pleased to introduce him as our next head coach."

Gerard Gallant, Rick Tocchet, and Larsen all interviewed twice for the job.

Larsen played in 294 NHL games across eight seasons, winning a Stanley Cup in 2001 with the Colorado Avalanche.