Bruins’ Jim Montgomery delivers honest, raw acceptance speech after winning Jack Adams Award

BOSTON — With all due respect to NHL players and coaches, they’re not exactly known for being overly captivating public speakers. The annual NHL Awards show typically includes a dozen or so of them sounding the same and saying mostly the same things for a couple of hours. What an honor, congrats to the other nominees, thanks to my teammates, thanks to my wife and kids, goodnight.

So Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery deserves full credit and then some for seizing his opportunity on Monday night to deliver a gripping and deeply personal speech upon receiving the highest honor of his profession.

Montgomery, 53, won the Jack Adams Award as the NHL’s best coach in the 2022-23 season. Considering he was on his first year on the job, and considering the Bruins set regular-season records in wins (65) and points (135), it was quite the accomplishment. Montgomery could have used this moment — the apex of his lifetime spent dedicated to hockey — to soak in the glory and deliver a standard acceptance speech, in which he stated his gratitude and exited stage left.

Montgomery did do that, but not before using his time on stage to reflect back upon what was likely the lowest point of his life, both personally and professionally. It was a wholly human moment for all to see.

“Three and a half years ago, the Dallas Stars terminated my contract because of my struggles with alcohol,” Montgomery stated bluntly, roughly a minute into his speech. “And I had to change my actions and behaviors. And that’s when my new team — the most important team in my life — has really, is what leads to the success that I live daily right now.”

After four years of playing collegiately and 12 years playing professionally, Montgomery had worked 13 years as a coach — from Notre Dame to Rensselaer to Dubuque (USHL) to the University of Denver — to get that first NHL head coaching opportunity. And in his first year, he led the Stars to 43 wins and 93 points in the regular season before defeating the Nashville Predators in the first round of the playoffs. The Stars ultimately lost in Game 7 of the second round against the St. Louis Blues, who would go on to win the Stanley Cup.

The Stars were off to a fine start in year two under Montgomery when he was abruptly fired in early December. There wasn’t much in the way of a public explanation for the move until about a month later, when Montgomery released a statement admitting his struggles with alcohol. By January of 2020, he had checked into rehab, stating that he was taking his situation very seriously and that he was dedicating himself to being a better person.

Two and a half years later, he was hired by the Boston Bruins. And a year after that, he was on stage in front of the hockey world to accept an award as the league’s best coach.

The journey to that spot was anything but easy, but Montgomery used the moment to admit — with humility — that he did not do it alone. Not even close.

“And for those who struggle out there, you can change, you can effect change within yourself. And it doesn’t happen alone,” Montomgery said. “You need a team, you need a community. And I’m lucky for friends like Baz, Murph, Super Dave, Sully, The East and West Coast Weapons, Strange Brew, I’m forgetting a few — Rammer, Zingers. People who’ve helped me daily overcome this. And I cannot do it without my family. I’ve got my 91-year-old mom sitting at home watching in the living room in Montreal right now. Love you, Dorothy. My three sisters and brother and their extended families, my St. Louis family, my four wonderful kids — J.P., Colin, Ava and Olivia. And I’m eternally grateful for my beautiful wife, who has stuck around around this guy through the ups and downs, and I cannot tell you how much I appreciate and love you. I’m very appreciative for both teams that I’m lucky to be a part of that help me on a daily basis. Thank you.”  

It was a moving speech, on a stage where raw emotion is typically lacking. And after the ceremony, when speaking to Bruins reporter Eric Russo, Montgomery was asked why he decided to use that moment to deliver that message.

“I think it’s important for people to realize that, you know, it’s hard to commit change in your life, especially when it’s addiction or mental health,” Montgomery said. “And I felt it was important that hopefully other people know that you can’t do it alone. You have to put a lot of work in, but you need others around you. And for others to keep supporting those who are struggling out there.”

The humility was, really, in line with Montgomery’s outward character. The rest of his speech was filled with appreciation and respect for Barry Trotz (who presented the award as a two-time winner), the other nominees, the Bruins front office and the work that the players put in throughout the season.

“The historical season that we had doesn’t happen by chance. There’s a commitment daily to the culture that’s led by our incredible leadership core, which is led by Patrice Bergeron, that I learned so much from those guys this year,” Montgomery said. “And I’m grateful to have worked with them.”

Gratitude, appreciation and humility were the theme of Montgomery’s speech. It lasted less than three minutes, but because Montgomery opted to open up about his own vulnerabilities and weaknesses, its effect on anyone who needed to hear that exact message will have a much longer-lasting impact.