Report: Michel Therrien believed to be Montreal Canadiens next head coach

The Montreal Canadiens will hire Michel Therrien as their head coach, TSN's Darren Dreger reported on Twitter late Monday night. Dreger reported an announcement is expected in the next 24 to 48 hours.

The Canadiens' reported choice of Therrien ends a long process to find the organization's next head coach. It included a spurn by Bob Hartley, who chose to coach the Calgary Flames after an earlier report said he was expected to become the Canadiens' next head coach.

Therrien was considered one of the two remaining front-runners for the position, along with Marc Crawford, who was most recently the head coach of the Dallas Stars.

Therrien, known for his fiery personality, coached the Canadiens for parts of three seasons. He also took the Pittsburgh Penguins to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2008.

Therrien took the Canadiens to the playoffs in just one of his three seasons as head coach from 2000-03. He was fired 46 games into the 2002-03 season. The Penguins also fired him, 57 games into the 2008-09 season.