Ex-Canucks coach Bruce Boudreau goes viral for pep talk with WWE superstars

When former NHL head coach Bruce Boudreau isn't in a hockey rink, there's a good chance you'll find him ringside at a WWE event.

Now jobless after being let go by the Vancouver Canucks last season, Boudreau has all the time in the world to attend whichever wrestling events he pleases.

The 68-year-old was in the building for Monday Night Raw in Hershey, Pennsylvania and got to link up with Canadian superstars and tag team champions Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn after their fight.

In classic "Gabby" fashion, the long-time NHL bench boss gave the pair of wrestlers a motivational pep talk, firing them up for next weekend's Night of Champions event in Saudi Arabia.

Boudreau has never been shy to express his love for professional wrestling, famously geeking out when Owens came over to surprise him at the 2022 NHL Draft in Montreal last summer.

Though he's always been pretty well-received by hockey fans over his career, Boudreau's charisma was especially prevalent during his time with the Canucks and in the weeks that followed his departure, notably appearing on TSN's Trade Deadline show in March as a guest panelist. Like he would do in his heyday in NHL locker rooms, the Toronto native knew just how to get the TSN crew ready to break trades on deadline day.

Boudreau was hired by the Canucks in December 2021 and immediately turned their season around, posting a plus-.500 record while winning fans over. Vancouver still failed to qualify for the playoffs that season, however, before limping out to a horrible start to the 2022-23 campaign.

With the club floundering near the bottom of the standings and management publicly admitting they were seeking a replacement behind the bench, Boudreau garnered sympathy from players and fans alike as he awaited his fate.

He was finally replaced with Rick Tocchet in late January, putting an end to a tumultuous tenure in Vancouver.