MONTREAL -- Bob Gainey is returning to the scene of his greatest triumphs.

		Mon, June 2 Bob Gainey is absolutely revered by everyone who's ever followed the Montreal Canadiens. A dynamic captain and leader as a player, Gainey will no doubt bring the same qualities to the general manager position. After retiring from the NHL, Gainey coached in France and became fluent in the language. He'll come in and re-tool the Canadiens to his liking, but it won't happen overnight. In today's market place (especially with the collective bargaining agreement coming to an end after next season), Gainey won't know what kind of funds he'll have at his disposal. It will be difficult to wheel and deal in one offseaon and change the look of the team. Certainly, no one is giving talented athletes away, but with Jose Theodore and Mathieu Garon in goal, he's got a great starting place to build on. Gainey also knows that to build a successful organization, you need the right personnel in management and leadership positions. He will certainly look at the coaching situation -- no one in the Canadiens' organization should feel that their job is secure right now. Montreal has had a series of people mismanage the Canadiens for a lot of years. Andre Savard did a decent job, but no one matches the stability, business acumen, and stature that Gainey can bring to this role.

Gainey, who as a Hall of Fame player helped lead the Montreal Canadiens to five Stanley Cups, was hired Monday as general manager of his old team. It has missed the playoffs four of the past five seasons despite one of hockey's highest payrolls.

Montreal provides me with a great challenge and a much different environment than the one I competed in the last 10 years," said Gainey, who spent that decade in Dallas.

"It is going to be different, it is going to be exciting, it is going to be testy, it is going to be tough, and it is going to be fun."

Gainey, who coached the Minnesota North Stars, moved with them to Texas and remained on the Stars' payroll after being replaced as general manager in January of 2000. He takes over from Andre Savard, who will become assistant general manager.

A Hall of Fame player, Gainey was captain of the Canadiens for the final eight of his 16 seasons in Montreal.

He won the Selke Trophy as the league's top defensive forward from 1978-81, the first four years it was awarded. He captured the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP in 1979, when the Canadiens won the last of four straight Stanley Cups.

Gainey takes over a team that finished 10th in the Eastern Conference despite a $46 million payroll.

Among the moves that failed were a trade for winger Mariusz Czerkawski, who scored only five goals and ended the season in the minors, and the signing of 36-year-old free agent Randy McKay, on the downside of his career. Czerkawski is owed $2.6 million next season and McKay is owed $2.125 million.

Savard also made a questionable deal for forward Donald Audette and suffered through a debacle involving defenseman Patrice Brisebois.

Brisebois, in the first season of a three-year deal paying him about $4 million per season, was booed by home fans and took time off due to stress in midseason.

Gainey praised Savard for stepping aside.

"This is a person who has expertise in the NHL for 30 years in many different capacities and in areas where I do not have expertise, and I'm going to need him," Gainey said of his predecessor.

Savard proved adept at drafting and restocking Montreal's development system but struggled at money management and player evaluation.

After retiring in 1989, Gainey was named coach of the North Stars in 1990 and led them to the Stanley Cup final in his first season.

In 1993, he moved with the team to Dallas, where it was renamed the Stars. In 1996, he left his coaching job to become GM full time.

The Stars won the Stanley Cup in 1999 and lost in the final to New Jersey the following season.