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Bob Gainey
Position: Executive Vice President and General Manager
Born in Peterborough, Ontario on December 13, 1953, Bob Gainey became the 15th General Manager in the history of the Montreal Canadiens on June 2, 2003. On January 14, 2006, he took over as interim head coach of the Canadiens before handing over the coaching duties to Guy Carbonneau on May 5, 2006. On February 23, the Canadiens officially retired his No. 23 jersey at a ceremony which took place at the Bell Centre.
Described by Russian hockey pioneer Viktor Tikhonor as the world’s most complete hockey player, from 1973 to 1989 Gainey played his entire NHL career with the Canadiens, and was the team captain for his last eight seasons. His resumé includes five Stanley Cup championships (1975 to 1979 and 1985-86) and seven Prince of Wales Conference championships. A four-time All Star team selection, Gainey also won the Frank Selke Trophy four consecutive seasons, from 1978 to 1981, more than any other NHL player. He was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as the Playoffs Most Valuable Player in 1979.
Following his playing career, Gainey began coaching the Épinal hockey team in France, before joining the Minnesota North Stars as Head Coach in 1990. That same year, he led the North Stars to the Stanley Cup finals. He was the Stars’ Head Coach and General Manager from 1992 to 1996.
During that period, he managed the team’s transfer from Minnesota to Dallas. From 1996 to 2002, as the Stars General Manager, Gainey led his team to one Stanley Cup Championship (1999), five consecutive Division Championships (from 1996 to 2001), and two Presidents’ Trophies awarded to the team with the NHL’s best regular season record (1998 and 1999).
Last season, under Gainey’s direction, the Canadiens finished atop the Eastern Conference standings.
At the international level, Gainey was Assistant General Manager of the 1996 Canadian Team at the World Cup of Hockey, and was one of three general managers of the Canadian Olympic team at the Nagano games in 1998. He was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1992. Bob Gainey is a member of the NHL Competitive Rules Committee since 2005. |
