Boston Bruins

Adam McQuaid rejoins Bruins as player development coordinator; Chris Kelly promoted to assistant coach

One of the key players acquired during the Bruins’ run to their 2011 Stanley Cup title, Chris Kelly was a perennial third line center on the Bruins for the past half decade, before being moved to left wing and having success alongside Soderberg and Eriksson. In 277 career games with the Bruins, Kelly has scored 41 goals with 58 assists.Injuries have plagued Kelly’s career in Boston; he played just 70 percent of the team’s games from 2012 throught 2014 due to various ailments. His contract is also a white elephant for the Bruins, with his $3 million per season not equating to his performance on the ice. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent after this upcoming season, so if the Bruins can find a suitor, Kelly could be on the move. Winslow Townson

By Kevin Paul Dupont, The Boston Globe

1 minute to read

Adam McQuaid formally returned to the Bruins on Friday, the one-time big-hitting defenseman joining the front office as player development coordinator, one of three moves the club made following the recent departures of coaches Jay Leach (to Seattle) and Jay Pandolfo (Boston University).

Chris Kelly, who played on the club’s 2011 Cup winner with McQuaid, will move from his role in player development and become an assistant on Bruce Cassidy’s varsity staff, joining Kevin Dean, Joe Sacco and Bob Essensa.

Ryan Mougenel, an assistant coach last season at AHL Providence, where Leach was head coach, was promoted to No. 1 bench boss with the WannaB’s. Mougenel, 45, grew up in Scarborough, Ontario, and played six seasons of minor pro hockey prior to launching his coaching career in 2005.

Advertisement:

McQuaid, 34, last played with Columbus in 2018-19 and was forced to retire due to a chronic neck injury. He was with the club just days ago as an on-ice instructor during the Aug. 2-6 development camp in Brighton.

Kelly, 40, a key trade-deadline addition in the weeks leading to the ‘11 Cup win, joined the front office two years ago in the player development role that McQuaid now will fill.

Leach, 41, in the spring finished his third year as head coach at AHL Providence and then moved to Seattle to become an assistant coach with the Seattle Kraken, the NHL expansion team that will begin play in October.

Advertisement:

Pandolfo, 46, spent the last five years as an assistant coach with the Bruins varsity, then returned to BU, where he was ‘96 grad, to become an assistant coach

Get the latest Boston sports news

Receive updates on your favorite Boston teams, straight from our newsroom to your inbox.

SIGN UP

To comment, please create a screen name in your profile

Conversation

This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com