Claude Julien of Blind River, Ontario will be the head coach for Team Canada at the 2022 World Men’s Hockey Championship in Helsinki, Finland from May 13-29. Canada is the defending champion as they beat Finland 3-2 in overtime to win the 2021 World Championship gold medal in Riga, Latvia. It was the 27th gold medal at the World Men’s Hockey Championship. They are tied with Russia/Soviet Union for the most ever. However due to the fact Russia is currently invading Ukraine, Russia and Belarus are not allowed to participate in Finland this year.
This will be the second major international hockey tournament Julien has coached for Team Canada this year. In February, he was Canada’s coach at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing. Julien was not the coach to begin the tournament however. That is because he broke his ribs during a training session in Switzerland, and was replaced by Jeremy Colliton of Blackie, Alberta.
Julien spent 18 seasons coaching in the National Hockey League with the Montreal Canadiens, New Jersey Devils and Boston Bruins from 2002 to 2021. While with the Bruins, he won the 2009 Jack Adams Award for NHL Coach of the Year. That year, the Bruins had a record of 53 wins, 19 regulation losses and 10 losses in extra time. Then in 2011, Julien coached the Bruins to a Stanley Cup.
