Senators fire longtime AHL head coach Troy Mann

Troy Mann was fired as head coach of the AHL Belleville Senators in February 2023. (TSN)

The Ottawa Senators have fired Troy Mann as head coach of the Belleville Senators, their AHL affiliate.

The team announced the surprise move in a news release issued late Thursday night.

"While a change at the head coach position during the season is not an ideal scenario, we felt it was necessary to deliver improved team performance," Ottawa Senators general manager Pierre Dorion said in a news release.

Mann had been Belleville's head coach since 2018 and is credited with helping the franchise's young players develop. Some of those players, such as Drake Batherson and Josh Norris, are now NHL stars.

The timing of the move—late at night after a 5-3 win over the Rochester Americans and just before the team embarks on its all-star break—raised some eyebrows.

The Belleville Senators are in sixth place in the AHL’s North division with a record of 17-22-3-1. Assistant coach David Bell will take over as Belleville's interim coach for the rest of the season.

“A change like this is a difficult decision, but we are aligned internally and feel this is necessary for the short and long-term growth of the players in our organization as well as the cohesion in systematic play between Ottawa and Belleville,” Belleville Senators general manager Ryan Bowness said in the news release.

"I want to thank Troy and his family for their contributions to the Belleville community.”

Mann's brother Trent Mann is an assistant general manager with the Ottawa Senators.