After the Hershey Bears beat the Bridgeport Sound Tigers 2-1 Wednesday night in Giant Center, Bears' coach Bruce Boudreau took an unusual amount of time before meeting the press.

"On the phone with George?" a wry sports writer asked him, a reference to Washington Capitals general manager George McPhee and that team's recent troubles.

Boudreau explained simply that a men's room stop necessitated the delay. Little did he know how meaningful the question would be less than eight hours later.

Before 7 a.m. on Thanksgiving Day, McPhee called Boudreau and asked the Bears' coach to guide his National Hockey League team as interim head coach. McPhee fired Glen Hanlon late Wednesday night after the Caps lost to Atlanta, 5-1, in Washington.

Boudreau accepted, and within an hour was driving down I-83 to oversee his first NHL practice.

"It's been a whirlwind," Boudreau told reporters after practice, adding that his morning included getting lost on the way to the Arlington, Va., rink.

So began Boudreau's NHL coaching career. The 52-year-old is the 14th coach in Capitals history, and the sixth former Hershey Bears coach to guide an NHL team. The others are Gary Green (Capitals), Bryan Murray (Capitals, Detroit Red Wings, Florida Panthers, Anaheim Mighty Ducks, Ottawa Senators), John Paddock (Winnipeg Jets), Bill Barber (Philadelphia Flyers) and Bob Hartley (Colorado Avalanche, Atlanta Thrashers).

Ironically, Capitals assistant coach Jay Leach, who will stay on and work for Boudreau, was head coach of the Hershey Bears from 1993-94 through 1995-96.

Boudreau's assistant coach in Hershey, Bob Woods, was promoted to interim coach of the Bears.

"It happened so quick," Boudreau told reporters, according to a video clip on the washingtoncapitals.com Web site.

"It's unfortunate. George is a good friend of mine and a good coach. But I've waited 32 years for this time, so I'm excited.

"I'm looking forward to it."

Boudreau, in his third season with the Bears, took the team to the Calder Cup championship two years ago and to the Calder Cup finals, losing to Hamilton, last season. The Bears are 8-7-0-0 this season after Wednesday night's win, their fourth straight.

Boudreau has a 103-45-11-16 record (.666 winning percentage) in two-plus seasons in Hershey. He has a career American Hockey League coaching record of 340-254-61 (.566) in nine years, with stints in Hershey, Manchester and Lowell.

He won an ECHL championship with Mississippi in 1999 and has had a winning record 13 of his 15 seasons as a pro head coach.

A former AHL all-star in his playing days, Boudreau ranks 11th in league history with 799 points in 634 games (316 goals, 483 assists). He led the league in scoring in 1987-88 and is one of only four AHL players ever to record three career 100-point seasons.

Boudreau played in the NHL with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Chicago Blackhawks. In parts of eight seasons, he had 70 points in 141 NHL games.

He takes over a Capitals team that many expected to contend for a playoff berth. But after a 3-0 start, they are 3-14-1 since, with the worst record in the NHL. They've dropped five straight.

"The last few games, it looked like we had lost the team," said McPhee. "You can't ignore that. You have to do something about it."

Seven current Capitals played for Boudreau in Hershey.

"I'm going to do what I'm going to do," said Boudreau. "I'm going to do the same thing I've done to be successful in other cities. There's no time to be in awe."

Woods, 39, becomes the 22nd head coach in Bears history. A former defenseman, he played on the Bears 1997 Calder Cup championship team and was Boudreau's assistant on their 2006 Calder Cup winner.

Ironically, both Boudreau and Woods will make their respective debuts today in the same arena. Washington takes on the Philadelphia Flyers at 1 p.m. at the Wachovia Center, and the Bears meet the Philadelphia Phantoms at 7 p.m.

Washington is at home Saturday night against Carolina. Hershey hosts the Phantoms Saturday at 7 p.m. in Giant Center.

When Boudreau's phone rang Thursday, he said he initially thought, "Who the hell is calling me at this time of the morning?"

Then, "Is it really George?"

"You want to think you're going to get an opportunity, that someone likes you enough to give you that opportunity," Boudreau told reporters.

"When it hits, it's like, 'Wow, it's really happening!'

"This is a dream."

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