The Ottawa Senators were labeled coach killers in recent years, after cycling through seven bench bosses in 12 seasons since Jacques Martin's eight-and-a-half-year reign ended in April 2004. They may have finally found their long-term fit in Guy Boucher, but at the very least, he seems to have found his fit with them.

“When you get a new coach you never know how it’s going to connect and this is the first time I’ve seen a guy come and collect a stick from everybody," winger Bobby Ryan said, according to Postmedia's Bruce Garrioch.

Boucher asked for sticks from each player so he could remember his first Senators team, which formed a very strong bond over the past nine months. The club took the defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins to double overtime in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final. It was a trying season on a personal level for a number of Senators, including Craig Anderson, whose wife was diagnosed with cancer, and Clarke MacArthur, whose career was thought to be in jeopardy due to concussions.

Ottawa hired Boucher in May 2016, marking his return to an NHL bench more than four years after being fired by the Tampa Bay Lightning. One year later, Boucher brought the team to within a goal of the franchise's second Stanley Cup Final berth. The Senators went 38-35-9 and fell short of the playoffs one year ago, under then-head coach Dave Cameron.

Ottawa's prolonged postseason run came much to the chagrin of many hockey fans and the media, who labelled the Senators "boring." The alleged slow play was a product of Boucher's strong defensive system, one that was fully embraced by the aforementioned Ryan.

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