The Dallas Stars have hired Glen Gulutzan as their head coach 12 years after he was fired from his first stint with them.
General manager Jim Nill announced the move Tuesday, with Gulutzan succeeding Peter DeBoer, who was fired following the team's playoff elimination in the Western Conference final for the third season in a row. Back in 2013, Nill had been the GM for only two weeks when he fired Gulutzan.
Gulutzan, who turns 54 in August, returns to Dallas after spending the past seven seasons as an assistant with the Edmonton Oilers, including the past two that ended with trips to the Stanley Cup Final.
"Since his previous time in Dallas, Glen has worked tirelessly to establish himself as one of the most respected coaches in the NHL," Nill said. "His extensive NHL experience, both as a head coach and assistant coach, speaks to his ability to innovate and adapt to the modern game, as well as build relationships with his players. Glen has worked with some of the best players in the world and continually found ways to maximize their skill sets to contribute to team success. We have full confidence that he is the right person to elevate our team to the next level."
The Stars announced the hiring of Gulutzan only minutes after the league's annual free agency signing period opened. They will formally reintroduce him Wednesday at their home arena.
This is Gulutzan's third job in charge of an NHL team after leading the Stars from 2011-13 and the Calgary Flames from 2016-18.
"My family and I are excited to come back to Texas where I started my NHL coaching journey more than a decade ago," Gulutzan said. "Jim and his staff have built a roster that is one of the most talented and deepest in the entire League. The right pieces are in place to compete for the Stanley Cup on a yearly basis. I'm ready to get to Dallas and start the preparation for next season."
Oilers GM Stan Bowman hinted at the hire at his season-ending news conference by saying he didn't want to announce anything regarding Gulutzan.
This is Nill's sixth head coach in Dallas, where he is going into his 13th season. Among his first decisions after becoming the GM was to not retain Gulutzan, who was 64-57-9 in his two seasons during the Stars' franchise-long stretch of five consecutive seasons missing the playoffs.
Gulutzan was 82-68-14 in his two seasons coaching the Flames, who were swept in their only playoff appearance with him.
Lindy Ruff was the first Dallas coach hired by Nill, who made two playoff appearances in four years before Ken Hitchcock returned for one season with the Stars, the team he led to its only Stanley Cup title in 1999 and was Western Conference champions again the next season.
Hitchcock, the only other head coach with more than one stint in Dallas, was followed by Jim Montgomery, Rick Bowness and DeBoer.