Newark, NJ -- (Sports Network) - The New Jersey Devils have named Jacques Lemaire their new head coach.

Lemaire had been the only head coach in the eight-season history of the Minnesota Wild before resigning in April and will make a return to New Jersey, where he spent five successful seasons that included the franchise's first Stanley Cup championship in the spring of 1995.

"Jacques Lemaire is one of the most respected coaches in the game," said Devils president/CEO/general manager Lou Lamoriello. "He is a teacher and a communicator, and knows what it takes to have success."

The Devils were 199-122-57 under Lemaire from 1993-94 through the 1997-98 season, reaching the playoffs four times. After a memorable run to the Eastern Conference finals in the spring of 1994 that ended with a double-overtime loss to the eventual Stanley Cup champion New York Rangers in Game 7, the Devils swept heavily-favored Detroit for the title the following spring.

After missing the playoffs in the spring of '96, the Devils captured Atlantic Division titles the next two seasons, but were beaten in the conference semifinals by the Rangers in 1997 and lost to Ottawa in the first round the following spring.

Lemaire remains the franchise's all-time leader in games coached with 378 and victories with 199.

The Devils needed a replacement for Brent Sutter, who cited family reasons in his decision to step down after two years at the helm. Sutter, who had one year left on his contract and subsequently took the vacancy in Calgary, was 97-56-11 in the regular season with the Devils, including a franchise-record 51 wins this past season, but both of his seasons ended with first-round playoff exits.

After a five-game loss to the Rangers in 2008, the 2009 postseason ended with a heartbreaking seven-game series setback to Carolina. The Hurricanes scored a pair of goals just 48 seconds apart in the final 80 seconds for a 4-3 triumph in Game 7.

Lemaire was 293-255-108 with the Wild, leading the expansion franchise to three playoff appearances. Their initial playoff season of 2003 ended in the Western Conference finals against Anaheim, a season that also saw Lemaire win the Jack Adams Award as the league's top coach for a second time.

The 63-year-old Hall of Famer also coached the Montreal Canadiens for one full season and part of another in the mid-1980s. He has an overall coaching record of 540-414-177.

Lemaire was an eight-time Stanley Cup winner during his playing days with the Canadiens from 1967-79. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1984, recording 366 goals and 469 assists for 835 points in 853 regular-season games.

The Devils also announced that Mario Tremblay will be an assistant coach. Tremblay was an assistant with Lemaire in Minnesota, as well as a teammate in Montreal, and a two-year head coach for the Canadiens from 1995-97.

John MacLean, a long-time Devils assistant, will take the head coaching position for New Jersey's AHL affiliate in Lowell.