Former Sens Head Coach DJ Smith Reportedly Hired by LA Kings Former Ottawa Senators head coach D.J. Smith appears to found a new NHL coaching gig. According to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, Smith is expected to be named an assistant coach with the L.A. Kings, joining the staff of interim head coach Jim Hiller. Smith was fired as Ottawa's head coach in December and replaced by 71-year-old Jacques Martin, the winningest coach in franchise history. The Senators hired Smith in May of 2019 after they had had started a rebuild and fired head coach Guy Boucher. Smith was 131-154-32 with the Senators, good for a .446 career points percentage in Ottawa. He built a reputation in the Ottawa locker room as a players' coach. But the Senators never looked good to start any season under Smith, including the last two when the rebuild (such as it is) had finally ended, giving Smith some good pieces to work with. Most of the successful stretches the team had under Smith came in the second half of seasons, after the club was completely out of playoff contention. The same might be said now of the 6-2-2 stretch the club just carried into the all-star break. News of Smith's move to LA comes three days after head coach Todd McLellan bid farewell to the Kings. LA fired him on Friday and replaced him on an interim basis with assistant coach Jim Hiller, who obviously put in a good word for Smith. From 2015-2019, Hiller and Smith worked together as assistant coaches in Toronto. Like McLellan, Hiller and Smith are both former Mike Babcock assistants, which doesn't look as good on a resume as it used to. Smith joins a spiralling Kings team that's doing the opposite of what his teams did in Ottawa. The Kings had a great start but have won just three times in their last 17 games.
