O'Connell, the Bruins Vice President and General Manager, played 12 seasons as a defenseman in the NHL, amassing 440 points in 860 games.

O'Connell spotted Sullivan's skills early
By John McGourty | NHL.com
Sept. 30, 2004

Sandwiched between stints with the Chicago Blackhawks and the Detroit Red Wings, Boston Bruins Vice President and General Manager Mike O'Connell spent six of his 12 NHL seasons as a defenseman with the Bruins. Those were the O'Connell's most productive years, as he posted in excess of 50 points in three-straight seasons. Even better for the fans and his teammates, in O'Connell's four full seasons in Boston, the Bruins won Adams Division titles in 1983 and 1984.

O'Connell was a terrific skater who was always ahead of the curve. He grew up in Cohasset, Mass., on the South Shore and was a top performer for Archbishop Williams High School in Braintree. As a 16-year-old, O'Connell played with the Braintree Hawks in a tough league against men, many of them former Division I college players.

O'Connell made an unusual move for a teen in that era by going to Kingston, Ontario, to play junior hockey. He spent two seasons there and was drafted by the Blackhawks 43rd overall in the 1975 Amateur Draft.

Interestingly, during his years in Boston, O'Connell was often paired with New York Islanders GM Mike Milbury. O'Connell once scored goals in seven-straight games, a team record for defensemen.

Following a career in which he scored 105 goals and added 355 assists for 440 points in 860 NHL games, O'Connell was hired to coach the San Diego Gulls of the International Hockey League. There he met Mike Sullivan, O'Connell's assistant coach with the Bruins at the end of the 2002-03 season and now the head coach of the Bruins.

Tell us about how you first met Mike Sullivan?

"I was coaching in San Diego. We had a new team in the International Hockey League and we joined the league late, in July. I can't remember my hiring date, but it was late too and we had to get right to work. We had to get a jump on players and get some into training camp. We had no affiliation with any NHL team, so we wouldn't be getting any players from those sources.

"I made some calls back East. I remember Mike Sullivan's name was on a list of free agents, so I called Boston University coach Jack Parker and asked about Mike. Jack told me Mike was a very hard-working kid who could probably play in the IHL. Jack was right. Mike worked hard and played hard for us. He was a dependable player and very coachable. He followed directions very well. The next year he was up playing for the San Jose Sharks.

"Over the years, we kept in touch and would see other from time to time around rinks in the summers. Of course, I continued to watch him play in the NHL. Mike's a terrific guy and a great family man. I know his parents, George and Myrna, operated a hockey league on the South Shore and one of my boys played on one of their teams.

How did Mike Sullivan become a coach in the Bruins' organization?

"Mike was finishing up his career with the Phoenix Coyotes in 2001-02. I knew he was thinking about retiring. I knew him pretty well as a person and I thought he'd make an excellent coach. He could do anything in life. If he put his mind to it, he could do it. He was playing for Bobby Francis and I think he was helping Bobby a little out there.

Sullivan went 41-17-9-4 in his first season coaching Providence. Were you pleasantly surprised?

"I knew it would be a learning experience for him. The biggest thing in going from playing to coaching is realizing that all the players don't think as much about the game as you do. The average player is not as dedicated. A coach can't assume that they are and it takes time to learn that. Mike is an excellent student of hockey and he is still learning this game. He will always be learning more and more about hockey because that's the kind of person that he is.

Which Bruins player is ready for a breakout season?

"Well, our captain, Joe Thornton. He was hurt at the end of last season. We're looking for him to bounce back with a big year. Sergei Samsonov has been injured a lot the past few years but I expect him to have a big year because he always plays hard. That's the way he is. Andrew Raycroft won the Calder Memorial Trophy and we're looking forward to another big year from him. It was nice the way Andrew worked out last year. You always hope it will work like that and it's nice when it does.

Who are your brightest prospects?

I know defenseman Jonathan Girard has been around for awhile, but he's still a young player and he missed last season after an auto accident last summer. He worked hard to get back into condition. Patrice Bergeron gave us a terrific season last year as a rookie, although he was hurt late in the season. That hurt us. Milan Jurcina, the big defenseman, I expect will stay with the team and I expect good things.

The big question we have to answer is what to do with Hannu Toivonen, our first-round pick in the 2002 Entry Draft. We may do what we did with Raycroft and send him back to Providence for another year of seasoning. We'll be looking at some veteran goalies if we do that."