BOSTON – Joe Sacco will make his debut as interim head coach on Thursday night when the Bruins aim to snap their three-game skid in the finale of a three-game homestand against the Utah Hockey Club at TD Garden.
“It’s an exciting day for all of us,” Sacco said of taking over behind the bench for Jim Montgomery, who was relieved of his duties on Tuesday after two-plus seasons. “I think we’re looking forward to getting this team playing better, getting them playing the way they’re capable of playing. It’s an exciting day for me. It’s something that…these opportunities don’t come around often.
“Sometimes it’s not the most ideal situation but you want to make sure that you’re doing the most to get the team prepared and get them ready and get them moving in the right direction.”
Sacco, who has been with the club for 11 seasons, said he was pleased with the team’s approach to Thursday’s morning skate.
“Things start to settle down a little bit for you,” said the Medford High School alum. “Today was a good day for our group. I thought we had a good pre-scout this morning, get the guys ready for the team that we’re facing tonight. I thought that they were receptive in the morning skate. It was a quick skate. It was really just to get our legs out there, execute some plays out there that we want to try to work on and save most of their energy for tonight.”
Boston’s new bench boss said he is hoping that energy will show when the Bruins host Utah in its inaugural trip to Causeway Street.“I’m hoping that we play with some energy and we have some passion and desperation in our game,” said Sacco. “That, to me, is the most telling sign right there is the energy level that we can play with. Sure, we’re gonna make some tweaks and we’re changing a couple things here and there with our structure but for me that’s the biggest thing.”
Bruins center Charlie Coyle said that over the course of his six-plus seasons with Sacco, he has developed a strong working rapport with his fellow Massachusetts native.
“Joe is an awesome guy,” said Coyle. “He’s been a great coach and will continue to be a great coach for us…I’ve worked with Joe however many years he’s been here and got to know him as a person, what he brings as a coach, and I love working with him he’s always been very fair, not afraid to bring things up…
“Through talks with him and his coaching, he’s made me a better player and I’m sure he is going to continue to do that, which I love.”
