Editor’s note: This story has been updated throughout since it was originally published.

The Stars fired coach Jim Montgomery for “unprofessional conduct” on Tuesday morning, ending his second season behind the bench while the team failed to disclose exactly why Montgomery was dismissed.

Stars general manager Jim Nill said in a press conference Tuesday morning “it was determined that there was a material act of unprofessionalism contrarian to the values and standards held by the Dallas Stars organization.” Nill said he found out about the act via phone call over the weekend and began an internal investigation on Sunday.

“Right now, I’m the leadership of the team, and it’s important to do the right thing,” Nill said. “We had to do the right thing in this situation.”

Nill said there is no criminal investigation and that no current or former players were connected to the decision, separating Montgomery’s firing from a wave of abuse allegations against hockey coaches in recent weeks. Nill also said there were no other Stars employees involved in the incident.

Montgomery did not respond to a phone call and a text message requesting comment. Owner Tom Gaglardi was in Dallas on Tuesday night, but declined to comment. Stars CEO Jim Lites declined to comment. Asked why he was unable to discuss the incident in question, Nill said “that is out of respect for everyone involved.”

“As I mentioned, per my statement, we decided it was unprofessional and a decision had to be made,” Nill said.

The Stars named assistant coach Rick Bowness the interim head coach. The organization also promoted Texas Stars head coach Derek Laxdal to serve as an assistant in Dallas, and Texas assistant Neil Graham was named the new Texas head coach.

The new coaching staff debuted Tuesday night in a 2-0 win over the Devils in which Radek Faksa and Joe Pavelski each scored goals, and Ben Bishop earned his first shutout of the season as the Stars dominated the lowly Devils.

Nill said there was “no connection to anywhere in the past that we are aware of.” Nill said he was in contact with the NHL, but the decision to fire Montgomery was made before the league released a four-point plan on personal conduct Monday evening.

The league’s plan came after a slew of allegations against coaches that abused players, either verbally or physically, which resulted in the resignation of Calgary’s Bill Peters and the suspension of former Stars head coach Marc Crawford.

Nill said the act happened a few days before he found out about it.

“We went through all the records, the information we received,” Nill said. “This all came to light on Sunday, and once I received information, sat down with it, digested everything, as I mentioned, talked to general counsel, and made our decision. … I’ve got a lot of respect for Jim Montgomery. He’s a very good coach, and unfortunately, sometimes in life, the hardest decisions are the toughest, and this was one of them.”

Nill was asked if he understood the confusion surrounding Montgomery’s firing if he did not disclose what actually happened. Nill then looked back at his prepared notes and responded.

“As I said, it was determined it was a material act of unprofessionalism,” Nill said. “That’s what happened.”

Stars players said they were not told what happened to Montgomery.

Tyler Seguin: “You trust your management, and I trust my management and support them. I don’t think anything more needs to be said. I don’t need no details. I trust their decision and going to move on.”

John Klingberg: “We don’t know what happened. Like I said, we trust the management [that] they’re making the right decision and we’re moving on.”

Montgomery was previously arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated in Collier County, Florida in 2008.

“I made a stupid decision. I regret it. I was embarrassed by it,” Montgomery told the Bangor Daily News of the arrest in 2013.

On the ice, the Stars rebounded from a 1-7-1 start with a 12-game point streak in November and entered Tuesday night’s game against New Jersey in the first wild card spot in the Western Conference. Nill said the decision to fire Montgomery was not based on on-ice performance.

Montgomery finished his Stars career with a 60-43-10 record.

Bowness becomes the latest coach in Dallas, which has now had four different coaches in the last four seasons, following Lindy Ruff, Ken Hitchcock and Montgomery. This will be the fourth time Bowness, 64, has replaced a coach during the season (2003-04 in Phoenix, 1996-97 with the Islanders, and 1988-89 in Winnipeg).

More: 5 things to know about Stars interim head coach Rick Bowness

Bowness said he will work with the forwards while assistant John Stevens works with the defensemen. Laxdal will be on the bench and run the power play, while assistant Todd Nelson will continue watching games from upstairs in the press box. Bowness will continue to run the penalty kill.

In a 35-year coaching career, Bowness has been on staffs in Dallas, Tampa Bay, Vancouver, Phoenix, New York, Ottawa, Boston and Winnipeg.

“It’s a huge shock for you and for all of us to come in here this morning and find this news,” Bowness said. “Usually, when a coach takes over a team, they’re struggling or they’re in the process of selling everyone for next year. … I’m in a fortunate position that Monty was an excellent coach, has got this team playing very, very well. We’re fortunate in that way. There’s no question it’s a shock to all of us.”

Bowness said the Stars will keep Montgomery’s style of play that prioritizes defense. Nill said the coaching staff would remain intact the rest of the season, and did not put a timeline on hiring a new head coach.

“We sat down as a staff, discussed it, we had different options,” Nill said. “Rick’s been around a long time, and done a great job. I think he manages staff very well and I just think it was the right choice for the organization where we’re at right now.”

Correction, 8:45 a.m. Wednesday: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated Calgary Flames head coach Bill Peters was fired. He resigned.