Julien aims to fix fragile Canadiens Claude Julien returned to the fishbowl that surrounds the Montreal Canadiens on Friday and jumped back into a head coaching role that he knows well. As TSN's Frank Seravalli explains, his first goals weren't X's and O's but rather a chat with the players and a promise that things will be different.

Frank Seravalli TSN Senior Hockey Reporter Follow|Archive

BROSSARD, Que. — More than 1,000 fans lined the glass concourse overlooking the ice at Bell Sports Complex. They were six and seven deep, with children hoisted on shoulders, all eager for a glimpse at the dawn of new era for the Canadiens.

The scene perfectly captured the Montreal fishbowl effect: more buzz than an Arizona Coyotes home game and two television networks broadcasting live ... for a Friday afternoon practice.

Welcome back, Claude Julien.

“I got an opportunity,” Julien said, “to come coach a team that plays in an incredible hockey city.”

What they saw was jarring, even if you knew it was coming. Julien stepped onto the ice wearing a Canadiens track suit and blue CH hat, just 10 days after sporting the same emblazoned with the spoked-B of Boston.

Julien went to the dark side, now he was back. It felt weird, except for Julien, having worn these colours 11 years ago.

He joked it was actually the same track suit from his first go-round.

“I kept it,” Julien said, deadpanning. “It’s tight.”

With largely the same equipment, training, public relations and front office support staff as the last time he replaced Michel Therrien in 2003, Julien said it felt more like he left his slippers in the hallway and now he was stepping back into them.

“I never lied about it when I came here: I was a childhood Montreal Canadiens fan,” Julien said. “Unfortunately, with different jobs, I had to get away from it for a little bit. But I’m back into it again.”

The day was longer, this time around. Julien, 56, admitted he hasn’t slept much recently - “the old term ‘sleep when you’re dead,’ I can do that” - because there was so much on his mind. There weren't enough hours in the day.

He drove to the Habs’ South Shore practice facility with a laundry list of housekeeping items, but Julien’s first order of business on Friday wasn’t X's and O's related. It was to begin mending a team with a fragile and fractured psyche.

“Guys had to go on the ice today feeling good about themselves,” Julien explained. “I made sure that happened. Guys want hope. Guys want positive messages. It’s easy for a new coach to give those positive messages.”

The Canadiens didn’t pile on Michel Therrien, but there seemed to be little doubt that his tenure had exhausted its useful life over the last five years.

“It kind of felt like a new season,” Carey Price said. “I don’t think the guys were playing with a lot of confidence. Maybe overthinking the game too much.”

This was a fresh start - for everyone. Captain Max Pacioretty said fresh eyes, fresh people evaluating him, hearing different ways of explaining stuff and even different buzzwords on the ice provided a boost.

Defenceman Greg Pateryn, who was always one mistake away from the press box under Therrien, said he used to feel like he had “someone breathing down my neck all the time.”

“Sometimes, this is what you need, even if you are a guy that’s in there every night and playing a lot,” Pateryn said. “It’s a new set of eyes to take a look at me. Sometimes you just need a new face, a fresh face. It’s beneficial for everyone, not just one or two guys.”

The reboot may be most beneficial for someone like Alex Galchenyuk, who only ever knew life in the NHL under Therrien’s watch. Julien's second order of business was to move Galchenyuk to the top line centre role with Pacioretty and Alexander Radulov - where he had not been since largely the first month of the season.

Galchenyuk, 23, netted 23 points in his first 25 games before going down with an injury. His confidence, and that of others, seemed to erode in the final few weeks of Therrien’s tenure, where he was often flip-flopped to the wing because of Therrien’s lack of trust in his face-off and defensive capabilities.

Julien said he will rely on his assistant coaches to get him up to speed, but his own evaluation process is beginning now.

“I’m going to give individuals real good opportunities because I think that’s the right thing to do for the team,” Julien said. “I’m new here, I’m not going to hide that. I’d like to try things that I think are going to work. If they don’t, I’ll make changes.”

If Julien can get Galchenyuk back on track, the trickle-down effect looms large. His production would take pressure off Pacioretty, who was one of the only consistent producers in Montreal’s top six since Jan. 9 - the last time they won two consecutive games (6-10-2 since). A steady Galchenyuk at centre would assuage fears for GM Marc Bergevin that the Habs are thin down the middle, leaving them an attack of Galchenyuk, followed by Philip Danault, with Tomas Plekanec well positioned on the third line.

A more balanced attack would also take the heat off Price, who has just an .894 save percentage in that same span. Price admitted he was so worn down from playing 43 of the first 58 games after September’s World Cup of Hockey that he went north during the bye week to get away from the game.

“I didn’t think about hockey,” Price said. “When I heard the news, I just put it in my back pocket.”

Thinking about hockey hasn’t been fun for the Canadiens. Pacioretty said Friday’s atmosphere, even in the fishbowl where it bordered on the absurd, was a reminder of why they play.

Julien said he made it a point to run into every Canadiens player during the course of the day for a quick one-on-one chat. Even if he said the talk was “about nothing", the message was clear. This will be different.

“I wanted them to know how good I think the team is,” Julien said. “We’re in first place. There’s no need to panic. There’s a need to fix. We’re going to fix things so we get back on the right track. We’re going to start winning again.”

Contact Frank Seravalli on Twitter: @frank_seravalli