Ducks name Randy Carlyle as their coach once again

The Ducks officially named Randy Carlyle as their coach Tuesday in a move that both parties hope will rekindle past success from Carlyle’s first stint with Anaheim.

The length of the contract was not immediately known. A press conference is scheduled after it was leaked late Monday by multiple outlets that the Ducks would return to Carlyle to replace the fired Bruce Boudreau, an eye-opening conclusion to a extensive six-week search by Ducks General Manager Bob Murray.

“A proven winner and motivator, Randy has expertly managed the bench throughout his coaching career,” Murray said in a release. “Our expectations are extremely high, and I believe Randy is the coach who can lead us to playoff success and our ultimate goal, the Stanley Cup.”

Carlyle coached the Ducks from 2005 to his firing 24 games into the 2011-12 season. He replaced previous coach Mike Babcock following the 2004-05 NHL lockout and produced the Ducks’ only Stanley Cup title, in 2007.

But the team struggled to sustain success amid subsequent salary cap restrictions and questionable personnel moves, some by former Ducks General Manager Brian Burke.

Carlyle and the Ducks won only one playoff series, a dramatic upset of the the top-seeded San Jose Sharks in 2009, after the Cup victory, and by 2011 Carlyle’s days were thought to be numbered.

Murray, at the time of Carlyle’s firing and hiring of Boudreau, said that, “At this time, we simply felt a new voice was needed.”

Carlyle will look forward to the reboot.

“I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to come back to Anaheim and rejoin the organization that gave me my first opportunity as an NHL head coach,” Carlyle said in a release. “I’ve followed this team closely for the last couple of years and am familiar with the core group. I believe this team can win immediately and I can’t wait to get started.”

Whether that voice is new again remains to be seen. Carlyle spent more than three seasons coaching the Toronto Maple Leafs and was fired in January 2015, after Toronto missed the playoffs twice and was eliminated in the first round in his tenure.

Other candidates for the position included former Ducks player and Utica Comets coach Travis Green and Rick Bowness, who signed a multi-year extension to remain an assistant coach with the Tampa Bay Lightning, the team announced Tuesday.

It was not known whether Paul MacLean and Trent Yawney would stay on as assistant coaches with Anaheim.

Carlyle went 273-182-61 in six-plus seasons with the Ducks.