Boston is no stranger to capable conductors turning talented players into harmonious productions. This is the land of Arthur Fiedler, John Williams, Seiji Ozawa, and Keith Lockhart. But which major pro sports coach in town is striking all the right notes, resonating with their players, and wielding their leadership baton the best, right now?
My rankings are based on this moment in time, not what coaches have done in the past or will do in the future. They also factor in what they’ve been handed to work with and expectations. Not every coaching success or failure is equal.
Like the Bruins themselves, this is probably a surprise. Ultimately, the job of a coach is to get the most out of a team. Nobody maximized their talent more than Sturm, who squeezed every last ounce of blood from the Spoked-B rock in his rookie season behind the bench. After the Bruins broke up their core and finished tied for the worst record and point differential in the Eastern Conference in 2025, Sturm guided them to 100 points and a return to the Stanley Cup playoffs. They were bounced by a superiorly equipped Sabres team in six games.
Watching the fast and furious Sabres face the high-octane Canadiens in a scintillating second-round series felt like watching a different hockey league than the one the Bruins play in, cementing the top-shelf job Sturm did. Bonus points for Sturm because his unexpected success came without the benefit of a player unfurling a career year and league MVP-caliber campaign, a la Drake Maye and Jaylen Brown. As Bruins president Cam Neely stated in the annual pucks post-mortem news conference, Sturm “did a remarkable job.” No argument there.
I can feel the outrage permeating my inbox. Let’s get this out of the way: If it weren’t for Vrabel’s Dianna Russini infidelity imbroglio, Vrabel would be No. 1. But that self-inflicted reputational wound and culture-denting distraction can’t be ignored. It became a “football story” the moment he stepped away from the third day of the NFL Draft and said he would seek counseling. It’s also unclear if Vrabel and the Patriots are completely clear from its blast radius. If so, no coach boasts a better long-term outlook for success than Vrabel.
The NFL’s Coach of the Year reversed the Patriots’ record in his first season, as the team went from 4-13 to 14-3 and a Super Bowl berth. No team in NFL history that won four or fewer games the season before has ever won more regular-season games. Maye’s franchise-QB play was the catalyst. Crediting Maye’s emergence solely to Vrabel is inaccurate. Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels worked his QB Whisperer magic.
Just Shoot ’em Joe is the only coach on this list who has led a team to a championship. Mazzulla did a masterful regular-season job. He deserves NBA Coach of the Year for adapting to a revamped roster, compensating for the absence of Jayson Tatum, and developing young players. His role player roulette instincts during the regular season were impeccable. The Celtics surged to the second seed in the Eastern Conference, turning a Gap Year into a championship chase.
Then … it all fell apart in the first round of the playoffs against the 76ers as Mazzulla and the Celtics regressed to genuflecting at the false idol of the 3-pointer and were slow to adjust. The Green blew a 3-1 series lead for the first time in franchise history.
Mazzulla has now lost three straight playoff series that have gone beyond five games, dating to 2023. At what point can we start citing that sample size instead of citing the Parquet Party Line that the Celtics generated good looks from three, but didn’t make them in [insert disappointing series loss here]?
4. Marko Mitrović, Revolution
Mitrović has restored the Revolution to relevancy after the Caleb Porter era/error fizzled in the standings and entertainment value-wise. The Porter Revolution made the Run Prevention 2.0 Red Sox look like an offensive juggernaut. Mitrović has revived the Revolution without a major roster overhaul, coaxing more out of players such as Luca Langoni.
The Revolution notched nine wins last year. They’ve already garnered eight under Mitrović in 13 matches (8-1-4). Under the shrewd Serb, the Revolution have scored seven set-piece goals, third-best in MLS, equaling their 2025 total. They’ve also displayed newfound resolve. New England entered Wednesday tops in points collected when trailing at halftime (9). The Revolution failed to register a victory when trailing at the half the prior two seasons.
The interim manager deserves an incomplete. As of Thursday, the Sox are 12-10 under Tracy, buoyed as much by the futility of the American League as swapping jockeys on a dilatory horse. Perhaps, Tracy serves up his own brand of Morgan Magic — Tracy Sorcery? — to fulfill the Fenway proclamations about championship contention.
You would have to be adept in the dark arts to get these mismatched, mix-and-match Sox to generate offense. To adapt homespun political pundit James Carville’s famous blunt line to the Sox’ offensive shortcomings: It’s the roster, stupid. That’s an indictment of chief baseball officer Craig Breslow, who removed his human hardball shield when he pulled the ripcord on Alex Cora after 27 games. Breslow and the Sox are looking for a season savior in Tracy.
If he pulls that off, he might be atop this list next time.
Christopher L. Gasper is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at christopher.gasper@globe.com. Follow him @cgasper and on Instagram @cgaspersports.
