The Boston Bruins hired Marco Sturm as their new head coach over the summer. Sturm is no stranger to the coaching world. He got his start coaching the German national team, leading them to a silver medal in the 2018 Winter Olympics. He also has experience as an NHL assistant and as an AHL head coach in the Los Angeles Kings organization.
However, taking the Bruins job was uncharted territory. It was his first experience as a head coach at this level. Sturm had to prepare himself for the task ahead of him. And he turned to a source few in the hockey world would have expected: the 2024 Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles.
“I follow other sports and championship teams and even coaches. The Philadelphia Eagles, that was my project. I was reading and looking up a lot of those teams. I liked the coach, the chemistry they had, I liked the comments and everything,” the Bruins coach said in a press conference recently, via Bridgette Proulx of WEEI.
The Eagles were a force in 2024, as running back Saquon Barkley had one of the best seasons by a running back of all time. Philadelphia's dominance in the Super Bowl was on full display. They defeated the Kansas City Chiefs by the score of 40-22.
Whether Sturm can lead his Bruins to similar success remains to be seen. However, the former Bruins forward has the team looking quite good. They currently own a record of 20-14-0, which is good for second in the Atlantic Division on 40 points. They trail the Detroit Red Wings by just a single point.
Sturm was brought in to right a ship that got off its course last season. So far, he has this team looking like a playoff contender. And the Eagles indirectly had a hand in influencing his approach behind the scenes.
