MONTREAL -- The wild fans, the history and the weight of expectations make the Montreal Canadiens a demanding team for any hockey coach, especially those with no NHL experience. [url=http://www.cheap76ersjerseys.com/?tag=cheap-amir-johnson-jersey]Ami r Johnson Jersey[/url] . But three who were in that

MONTREAL -- The wild fans, the history and the weight of expectations make the Montreal Canadiens a demanding team for any hockey coach, especially those with no NHL experience. Amir Johnson Jersey . But three who were in that position in the late 1990s and early 2000s -- Alain Vigneault, Michel Therrien and Claude Julien -- have gone on to do some impressive things in the NHL. A victory in the Eastern Conference final between Vigneaults New York Rangers and Therrien, in his second stint with Montreal, will put one of them in a Stanley Cup final. Between the three men, they will have been to the final five times. In 2008, Therrien reached the final with the Pittsburgh Penguins, losing in six games to the Detroit Red Wings. In 2011, Juliens Boston Bruins defeated Vigneaults Vancouver Canucks to claim the Stanley Cup. And in 2013, Julien had the Bruins back in the final only to lose to the Chicago Blackhawks. All three have credited the chance they got to coach middling-to-weak Montreal teams with their later success, even if their head coaching prospects were in doubt when they were eventually let go by the Canadiens. "You never know about the future," said the 50-year-old Therrien, whose team is coming off a second-round win over Juliens Bruins. "We learned a lot when we were young and that goes with experience. "Having to deal a lot with you (reporters) is a big part of our job. But it goes through a process. It goes with experience. Myself, Alain, Claude, we were young coaches at the time and we learned a lot. We started in Montreal and, Alain and me, we almost took the same route. We went back to the minors and went back to junior and the American League. "So Im glad for the success (Vigneault) had in Vancouver and New York. That was a great learning experience as a young coach to start in Montreal." There were actually four inexperienced coaches in a row, as Mario Tremblay got it started when he replaced Jacques Demers in 1995. But while Tremblay later worked as an assistant, he never got another head coaching job. In 1997, Tremblay was replaced by Vigneault, a former Ottawa Senators assistant who had been coaching in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. Vigneault was replaced midway through the 2000-01 campaign by Therrien, who in turn lost his job to Julien in 2003. Vigneault was out of coaching for two seasons but returned with the junior P.E.I. Rocket before being named head coach of the Manitoba Moose, the Canucks AHL affiliate at the time. He was promoted to the Vancouver job to start the 2006-07 season and promptly took the Canucks to a division title and got the Jack Adams Trophy as NHL coach of the year, beating out Therrien and Buffalos Lindy Ruff. The Quebec City natives Canucks finished first overall in the NHL twice. But a drop-off last season saw Vancouver opt for former Rangers coach John Tortorella while Vigneault signed a five-year deal with New York. Now Vigneaults looking for another trip to the final. "My first NHL gig as a head coach was in a beautiful place, a Canadian city where hockey is passionate, hockey is demanding," the 53-year-old said. "Expectations were always very high, so I learned a lot. "I worked with some great people. It took me six years to get another kick at the can and obviously when I got my other chance, I used my experience in Montreal and my experience of going back to junior and also going to the American League and tried to help my new NHL team the best way I could. Now, this year, the Rangers have given me another opportunity and thats what Im trying to do." When Therrien left Montreal, he got a job coaching the Penguins farm club in Wilkes-Barre and was promoted to the NHL club on Dec. 15, 2005. He was fired suddenly on Feb. 15, 2009, one season after going to the final, in favour of Dan Bylsma. The new coach got Pittsburgh back to the final and avenged the defeat of Therriens team the year before by beating the Red Wings for the Cup. Therrien worked in television while waiting for his next chance, which came when new general manager Marc Bergevin hired him to return to the Canadiens at the start of last season. After Montreal, Julien was hired by the New Jersey Devils, but he also fell victim to a surprise firing late in the 2006-07 season despite a 47-24-8 record. The Bruins snapped him up the following season. Markelle Fultz Jersey . Then he got back at the team that released him five days before the start of last season, hitting a tiebreaking double in the ninth inning of the first game at Fenway Park since Boston won the World Series last October. James Young Jersey .Brady threw a 69-yard touchdown pass to Julian Edelman midway through the fourth quarter, and New England beat the San Diego Chargers 23-14 for its eighth win in nine games. http://www.cheap76ersjerseys.com/ .com) - Former New York Mets general manager Omar Minaya is joining the Major League Baseball Players Association staff as a senior advisor to executive director Tony Clark. ARLINGTON, Texas -- Maybe theres a little Lonnie Baseball to go with Johnny Football in Cleveland. Lonnie Chisenhall left quite an impression in Johnny Manziels home state. Chisenhall had nine RBIs and three home runs in a five-hit game, Michael Brantley scored five times and the Cleveland Indians beat the Texas Rangers 17-7 Monday night. "I know a day like today is kind of a once-in-a-lifetime thing," said Chisenhall, who raised his batting average to .385 but needs more plate appearances to quality for the league lead. "Im enjoying it as much as I can. I dont know the history of it, whos done it in the past." The history is pretty exclusive. Major League Baseball said it was the first time a player went 5 for 5 with three homers and nine RBIs, since the RBI became a statistic in 1920. He also is only the fourth big leaguer to have at least five hits, nine RBIs and three homers in a game -- first since Bostons Fred Lynn in 1975, according to STATS. "He just wasnt missing," Rangers manager Ron Washington said, who team is winless in the past seven series at home. "Breaking balls, fastballs, it didnt matter." The only other nine-RBI game in Cleveland history was by Chris James in a 20-6 victory over Oakland on May 4, 1991. Chisenhall, who had the second multihomer game of his career, finished 10 for 17 with four homers and 13 RBIs in a trip to Texas that ended with Clevelands first road winning streak of the season. Before his third homer, Chisenhall and Jason Kipnis danced in the dugout together during a brief break after home plate umpire Jim Wolf was knocked out of the game when he was hit in the mask by a foul ball. Maybe they knew what was coming. "As hard as it is to beat those dance moves, his swing was prettier," Kipnis said. "Hes attacking the ball right now, and hes swinging at the right pitches and hes learning about himself as a hitter. Right now, hes in one of those zones when he attacks and hes just not missing." The Indians won three straight in the four-game set after coming to the Lone Star State with the worst road record in the majors. Theyre headed to Kansas City to continue the first of three 10-game trips this season. Cleveland hit five homers, won for the ninth time in 10 games and pulled within two games of Detroit just three weeks after trailing by 10 1/2. Charles Barkley Jersey. Chisenhall had two-run homers in the second and fourth innings before hitting a three-run shot down the right field line in the eighth to give the Indians a 17-6 lead. It was his second homer off Texas reliever Scott Baker, who was trying to give the Rangers a long outing but allowed 11 hits and nine runs in five innings. "I mean, hes fouled off about four pitches were out of the strike zone and then just gets something that he can handle," Cleveland manager Terry Francona said. "He feels good about himself. Again, Im stating the obvious." Chisenhall had the first three-homer game for the Indians since Sept. 17, 2010, by Shin-Soo Choo, who now plays for the Rangers. The left-handed hitter had an RBI single in the first and a run-scoring double in the sixth. The homers and RBIs were career highs for Chisenhall. He had five hits earlier this season at Toronto. Texas right-hander Nick Martinez (1-3) gave up eight runs in two innings in a matchup of rookie starters. Cleveland left-hander T.J. House didnt make it to the fifth inning and missed a chance for his first major league win despite taking a 9-1 lead into the third. Scott Atchison (3-0) pitched 1 2-3 scoreless innings. Brantley tied his career high with his 10th home run for a 10-4 lead in the fourth and reached base all five times. George Kottaras had the other Cleveland homer, his third. Texas Alex Rios, who went 2 for 4 and is the ALs top hitter at .335, had his league-leading eighth triple, driving home Adrian Beltre in the third. Michael Choice hit his third homer in the past five games, giving him six for the season. Jason Kipnis had three singles and four RBIs for the Indians, including a two-run single in a five-run second inning. NOTES: The others with five hits, three homers and 9 RBIs since 1920, according to STATS, were Gil Hodges for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1950 against the Boston Braves and Walker Cooper for Cincinnati against the Chicago Cubs in 1949. ... Chisenhalls outburst was the first with at least three homers and nine RBIs in the majors since the Yankees Alex Rodriguez had three homers and 10 RBIs against the Los Angeles Angels on April 26, 2005. Cheap Diamondbacks Jerseys Cheap Braves Jerseys Cheap Orioles Jerseys Cheap Red Sox Jerseys Cheap Cubs Jerseys Cheap White Sox Jerseys Cheap Reds Jerseys Cheap Indians Jerseys Cheap Rockies Jerseys Cheap Tigers Jerseys Cheap Astros Jerseys Cheap Royals Jerseys Cheap Angels Jerseys Cheap Dodgers Jerseys Cheap Marlins Jerseys ' ' '