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Montreal Canadiens axe two long-time trainers: report

Colton Pankiw
Colton Pankiw
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Jun 13 2023, 10:53 pm
Montreal Canadiens axe two long-time trainers: report

The Montreal Canadiens have reportedly fired two long-time trainers.

According to TVA Sports’ Tony Marinaro, both Donald Balmforth and Graham Rynbend have been relieved of their duties. No further information on what led to these decisions has been released.

Rynbend worked for the Canadiens for 26 seasons, the last 19 of which came as the team’s head athletic therapist. Prior to that role, he served as an assistant athletic therapist.

Balmforth had been with the Canadiens for over 16 years, the last five of which he served as their head physiotherapist. Before his last role, he spent 11 years as a physical therapy consultant.

While the news only broke recently, there is at least one former NHLer who was disappointed to hear what transpired. Craig Rivet, who played parts of 12 seasons with the Canadiens from 1994 to 2007, made sure to let it be known what an amazing person Rynbend is.

“Graham Rynbend was one of the greatest people I met through my NHL journey,” Rivet tweeted. “Sad to hear he’s moving on, but greener pastures are ahead.”

The Canadiens struggled this past season, as their 31-45-6 record ranked 28th amongst the NHL’s 32 teams. While injuries weren’t the sole reason, they did play a major part, as several players, including Cole Caufield, Sean Monahan, Kirby Dach, and Brendan Gallagher, missed significant time.

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