Former Panther Muller Named Carolina Coach

One-time former Florida Panthers center Kirk Muller was named the new head coach for the Carolina Hurricanes on Monday. For the last several months he had been the head coach of the Nashville Predators AHL affiliate in Milwaukee. Muller was an assistant coach with the Montreal Canadiens for five seasons until this spring. He played for 19 seasons in the NHL which included winning the Stanley Cup with the Canadiens in 1992-93. Muller, known as Captain Kirk while with the New Jersey Devils, was part of the Florida Panthers when he was picked up in a late-season trade from the Toronto Maple Leafs during the 1996-97 season and stayed until 1998-99. Although he had 13 goals and 47 points in 162 regular season games with the Panthers, he played well in the 1996-97 first-round playoff series against the New York Rangers scoring one goal and three points in five games.