After his dismissal as Bruins coach last Tuesday, Claude Julien did not change his mind about one thing. He and wife Karen would still spend part of this week in Barnard, Vt., just as they had planned, with the team on its break.

Shortly after arriving in Barnard, however, Julien had a change of heart about something else. 

He originally had planned to decline all coaching offers until the end of the season. But when Montreal general manager Marc Bergevin called, Julien brought his pause to an end. 

“Had it not been an ideal situation, I think I would have refused or not taken it,’’ Julien said during a conference call Wednesday. “Great organization, great people, a lot of potential, great team. Everybody says it’s some of the best fans in the world, too.

“Everybody gets excited to play in Montreal. It’s something that appealed to me. It came quicker than I expected. I’m certainly ready for the challenge and looking forward to it.’’ 

Even though Julien has coached the Canadiens before, he has game-planned against them for the last 10 years. His mixed use of pronouns underscored the suddenness of the change. 

“They’re a good team,’’ Julien said. “We all know they have the best goaltender in the world. They’re solid in the back end. That’s not to say we don’t have to fix and make our team better.

“There’s a lot of talent up front. I know the talent has been a little bit dried up as far as scoring goes. We’ve got to fix all those things. That’s my job. I’m here to fix and tweak and do things to put this team back on track.

“They’ve got good skill. They skate well. They have a good balance of grit and skill and size.’’ 

Julien is in Montreal for a second time (he was coach from 2002-06), reinforced with the security of a five-year contract. His new deal absolves his former employer of the year-plus he had remaining on his deal. 

Julien is a rink rat. His job is to fix the ailments of the first-place Canadiens, starting with straightening out goaltender Carey Price. But he’s also intent to rinse and spit out the disappointment of being sacked after a 10-year run in Boston. 

At the time of his dismissal, the Bruins were the best possession team in the league. They had scored 20 goals in their last five games. By their count, they were allowing fewer quality chances than before. But on the morning of the Patriots parade, general manager Don Sweeney told Julien he was out. 

“I’d been in the office the day before, really looking to fix things and get us back on the winning track,’’ Julien recalled. “The next morning, I found out. It’s not a shocker, but I don’t think I was necessarily expecting it.’’ 

Julien has been fired three times, including once by the Canadiens. Being a veteran of the experience did not make it easier. If anybody knew how Montreal’s Michel Therrien felt about being shown the door, it was Julien. 

“I’m a guy that was let go a little over a week ago,’’ Julien said. “I know the feeling when you’re let go. It’s not a fun feeling. It’s not something you like to go through. We know how much it affects not only you but your family.’’ 

Julien watched only part of the Bruins’ 6-3 win over San Jose last Thursday. He did not watch their 4-3 win over Vancouver Saturday. That was by design. 

“I didn’t think it was healthy at the time,’’ Julien said. “I needed to bring my head to another area. By not watching was probably the best way.’’ 

The Bruins fired Julien for several reasons. Sweeney and Julien did not agree on the quality of the top-heavy roster. Sweeney wanted to see whether Bruce Cassidy, long considered Julien’s successor, could help the team get back in the playoff chase. Sweeney wanted to get a better read on his roster to help determine future player movement. The Bruins had to show customers that someone had to be responsible for missing the playoffs for two and potentially three straight years. 

The Canadiens, meanwhile, were going through their own crisis. Price’s game had fallen off. Their first-place lead had shrunk to 6 points. They were 3-6-1 in their last 10 games. 

Bergevin said he was considering a change regardless of Julien’s firing. But when the Bruins dismissed Julien, it accelerated Bergevin’s thinking. Bergevin was convinced of two things: He had to fire Therrien, and he had to hire a coach (a French-speaking one, at that) he considers a superstar. 

“I felt Claude was a good man, a man of integrity,’’ Bergevin told Montreal reporters during a Wednesday press conference. “His track record speaks for itself. He’s been here before as a rookie coach. He left and won a Stanley Cup in Boston. In 10 years in Boston, he learned a lot.

“Montreal is a tough market. But he’s coming back, just like Michel did, and he did very well in his second time around. I have no doubt in my mind it will be the same with Claude.’’ 

The Canadiens are on their break, just like the Bruins. They will reconvene Friday afternoon for their first practice under Julien. They will host the Jets Saturday. 

 Julien’s new team will not play his former club again this season unless they meet in the playoffs. 

“There’s a rivalry that exists between the two organizations,’’ said Julien, who cited Zdeno Chara, Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, David Krejci, and Tuukka Rask as players who helped him win the Cup in 2011.

“I intend to keep that rivalry going on the ice. Not off the ice. I have too much respect for those players.’’ 

Fluto Shinzawa can be reached at fshinzawa@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeFluto.