A new head coach has just been hired in the Montreal Canadiens' organization: Daniel Jacob is the man

The Laval Rocket have a new voice behind the bench. Daniel Jacob was named head coach on Monday, becoming the fifth in franchise history.

General manager John Sedgwick made the call, promoting from within after two seasons watching Jacob run the blue line.

Jacob, 45, spent 2024-25 and 2025-26 as Laval's assistant coach. He handled the defensemen and ran the penalty kill units.

This isn't his first run with the organization. Jacob was also on staff from 2018-19 through 2020-21, his first stint in Laval.

Before that second homecoming, he logged one season apiece as an assistant with the San Diego Gulls and the Syracuse Crunch.

Fifteen years in junior and pro hockey got him here. That's a long runway for a first head coaching job in the AHL.

The penalty kill coach Montreal is trusting to shape its next wave of defensemen

Sedgwick didn't hedge in his statement, calling Jacob "the right person for this role" with "full confidence" in his ability to develop young players.

Strong words. But then again, what else does a GM say the day he hands someone the keys?

Jacob's path here wasn't a straight line. Four seasons as an assistant with the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada in the QMJHL came before he ever coached pro.

He also spent four years coaching at McGill University in U Sports, the same program where he played.

As a player, Jacob put up 37 points, 16 goals and 21 assists, with 369 penalty minutes across 108 games at McGill.

He turned pro after that, finishing his playing days with the San Antonio Rampage before closing out his career with Innsbruck HC in Austria.

The Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu native has now worn almost every hat this sport offers: player, junior assistant, university assistant, AHL assistant, and now head coach.

Whether that path translates into wins is the only question that matters now. Laval's roster, stocked with Montreal's prospects, is about to find out.