Montgomery calls the events that led him to coach Blues ‘crazy, crazy’

This started on Sunday when he held a team meeting. Montgomery said there were a lot of smiles in the room.

“When someone of that caliber is available and knows the team that well, knows the players, knows the staff, knows the entire organization and really believes in it, that’s the message that comes into the room,” Thomas said. “That’s a message that brings a lot of energy to this room.”

But the Blues are different now than they were a few seasons ago.

As assistants, they reached the Stanley Cup playoffs in each of Montgomery’s seasons. Today, St. Louis sits sixth in the Central Division with 19 points, one win in its last four games, two in nine (2-6-1) and four in 13 since Oct. 26 (4-9-1).

The Blues rank 30th in the NHL in goals per game (2.36), 25th in goals against (3.36) and power play (16.7 percent), and 24th in penalties ( 75.9 percent).

Montgomery’s availability is the main reason for the coaching change, but those stats and her record certainly played a role in it as well.

“We know that we have to play better and we still hold ourselves accountable,” said Schenn. “I don’t think we’re going to sit here and say we’re going to let ourselves off the hook just because they have their man. … We have to do a lot better, myself included.”

Montgomery was asked if he believes the Blues can be a playoff team this season.

“I don’t know the cap yet, so I can’t answer that definitively,” he said. “I believe in this group. It’s not easy to make the playoffs in this league, half the teams miss out, but I think over time this is a playoff-caliber team.”

That doesn’t apply to this season, which is why the five-year deal means so much to Montgomery.

The team’s commitment to him gives Montgomery the confidence that he can both train for today to try to improve and be a playoff team, while also training for tomorrow so the Blues can develop properly and again can become a consistent contender.

“Whether I’m at the end of a one-year contract or have a five-year contract, it won’t change the way I deal with the process and the results; I expect this to drive success,” Montgomery said. “But when you have a five-year contract, you can afford to be a little more patient.”