BOSTON -- The worst-kept secret in Boston is expected to be revealed Monday.

The Boston Bruins have scheduled a Monday morning news conference to introduce their new coach, widely rumored to be Mike Sullivan, who ended the 2002-03 season as an assistant with the team.

The position has been vacant since general manager Mike O'Connell fired Robbie Ftorek on March 18 and went behind the bench on an interim basis. He also named Sullivan an assistant.

Sullivan had been coaching Boston's American Hockey League affiliate in Providence, where he returned for the AHL playoffs.

The Bruins had scheduled a news conference to introduce their coach for Wednesday but postponed it because of a scheduling conflict. Monday's gathering is set for 11 a.m. ET at the FleetCenter.

Sullivan, 35, would become the youngest coach in the NHL, just ahead of Carolina's Paul Maurice. He spent 10 seasons in the NHL as a center, totaling 53 goals and 80 assists in 667 games.

http://espn.go.com/nhl/news/2003/0620/1570861.html