The Canadiens Just Made an Unexpected Change Behind the Bench

The Montreal Canadiens are adding Derek Lalonde to their coaching staff as an assistant, according to Sportsnet’s Eric Engels.The change comes as one coach has decided to step away for more personal family time and with Lalonde recently available after being let go by the Toronto Maple Leafs.

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Lalonde was most recently an assistant coach with the Maple Leafs, but he was just let go there on July 7 — as part of the same staff shakeup where Jim Hiller replaced Craig Berube and brought in his own people (including Daniel Alfredsson on Tuesday). Before Toronto, Lalonde was head coach of the Detroit Red Wings, hired in 2022, where he went 89-86-23 in two seasons, missing the playoffs, and was fired on December 26, 2024, and replaced by Todd McLellan. Before that head-coaching stint, he served as an assistant coach for the Tampa Bay Lightning from 2018 to 2022, helping lead the team to consecutive Stanley Cup titles in 2020 and 2021.

Lalonde steps in to replace Trevor Letowski, who is stepping away from the bench — not because of performance or a front-office decision, but to spend more time with his family. Notably, the Canadiens reportedly want to keep Letowski in the organization in some capacity, suggesting this is a personal choice rather than a departure from the team altogether.

His hiring adds another experienced voice to Montreal’s staff as the team looks to build on its recent progress and take another step forward heading into next season.

Details on Lalonde’s specific responsibilities within the coaching staff, along with any further staff moves, are expected to be addressed as training camp approaches. For now, the headline move is clear: a familiar face is out from behind the bench, and a new one with a head-coaching pedigree is stepping in to help Martin St. Louis.

Next: Daniel Alfredsson Makes a Maple Leafs Choice That Hurt Senators