Devils coach Lemaire to address his future Sunday

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) - Jacques Lemaire isn't going to keep the New Jersey Devils guessing about his coaching future.

The Hall of Famer, who came out of a short retirement in December after John MacLean was fired, says he will announce his status for next season after the Devils' season finale against the Boston Bruins on Sunday afternoon.

"I am going to save you a trip," said Lemaire, who will turn 66 in September.

Lemaire, who retired after last season, would not say which way he was leaning or whether he had already told his team.

"That's a secret," said Lemaire, who led the franchise to its first Stanley Cup title in 1995.

The Devils staged a magnificent second-half run under Lemaire. Twenty-seven points out of a playoff spot in early January, they went 23-3-2 to draw within six points of a playoff spot a couple of weeks ago.

The rally fell short and the Devils will miss the playoffs for the first time since 1996.

New Jersey was 28-17-3 under Lemaire heading into Sunday's game.

Lemaire coached the Devils from 1993-98. He was hired as the first coach of the expansion Minnesota Wild in June 2000 and coached them through the 2008-09 season. He returned to the Devils for the 2009-10 season.

A member of eight Stanley Cup championship teams as a player and two more in the front office with Montreal, Lemaire coached the Canadiens from February 1984 through the end of the 1984-85 season. He won the Jack Adams Award as the NHL's top coach in 1993 and 2003.