Jacques Martin (hockey coach)
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Jacques Martin is the former coach of the Ottawa Senators Ice hockey team.
Martin is a career coach who never played a game in the NHL. He served first as a coach of the Peterborough Petes in the Ontario Hockey League and then with the Guelph Platers (where he won a Memorial Cup in 1986) before being briefly promoted head coach of the St. Louis Blues of the NHL. Martin only served a short while in that position and became an assistant coach of the Quebec Nordiques. When the franchise moved to Denver and became the Colorado Avalanche Martin remained and won a Stanley Cup with the team as assistant coach in 1996.
When the Ottawa Senators, a struggling expansion team with a very poor overall record, needed a new head coach in 1996 they hired Martin. Martin has lead the team to great regular season success, winning the Northeast Division three times and the President's Trophy once. Martin was thrice nominated for the Jack Adams Award for top NHL coach and won it in 1999. An unfortunate mar on Martin's record was a long period of performing below expectations in the playoffs, but after victories in 2002, and 2003 this seemed no longer to be the case, but after a disappointing 2003-2004 season and an inglorious first round exit from the playoffs Martin was fired. He had been the longest serving coach in the NHL.
Martin is a defense first coach who relies on playing tight defensive game. He makes good use of the speedy young talent on Ottawa, and also instills defensive discipline. Martin is not a very extroverted coach and is usually soft spoken and lacking much of the fire and charisma of other noted NHL coaches. He is still well respected, however.
On May 26, 2004, Martin was hired as the new head coach of the Florida Panthers, along with Mike Keenan as the new general manager.
| Preceded by: Dave Allison | Head Coaches of the Ottawa Senators 1996–2004 | Succeeded by: Bryan Murray |
| Preceded by: John Torchetti | Head Coaches of the Florida Panthers 2004- | Succeeded by: none |