Kelly McCrimmon

It's been a challenging year for a lot of teams with the Olympic schedule.

And we had eight Olympians, nine if William Carlson had been available.

So we had a lot of people that were committed there.

Bruce as well was part of the team.

uh, Canadian staff.

And it just, it's really been a grind to, uh, to get through the year.

And, uh, we just, you know, got to a point where we weren't getting the results, uh, you know, again and again, we were, uh, you know, five, 10 and two since the Olympic break at a time where we were really hoping to, uh, you know, to take a step.

I think we were in first place for,

96 days in the Pacific Division this year.

We've gone from first to second, from second to third, and now in a battle for a playoff spot.

So these aren't moves that you like to make.

As a manager, you're making hard decisions on good people.

That's the nature of the job if you're doing your job properly.

And if you feel that a change needs to be made, you need to act on it.

So that's sort of how it came down.

And this morning when I did media, I thank Bruce for his four years, his commitment and contribution.

He's a Stanley Cup champion with our team.

I think that keeps people connected forever.

For a lifetime, he'll coach again as soon as he wants to, and I know he'll do a really good job.

Our relationship was really strong during his time here, and that's what makes days like yesterday really difficult.