Dominique Ducharme shows class when talking about Jeff Petry

Dominique Ducharme was head coach of the Canadiens for less than a year. So much happened in that year that it may seem like more than that. But no: it lasted more than 11 months.

Ducharme has his faults (and I’m sure he did some soul-searching after being fired by Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton), but if there’s one thing you can’t fault him for, it’s his class.

Publicly speaking out against others and airing his dirty laundry doesn’t exist for him. He explained his point of view on certain situations, but without taking shots at others.

That’s the case for all his former players. And obviously, that includes Jeff Petry, who has never been shy about making it clear that he doesn’t like his coach – or, in February 2022, his former coach.

But even if Dominique Ducharme and Jeff Petry didn’t exactly hit it off, that doesn’t mean the former Canadiens driver is going to speak out against his former protégé.

Quite the contrary, in fact.

Yesterday, as part of an interview on BPM Sports with Greg Lanctot, Dominique Ducharme was asked to comment on the transaction that brought Petry back to Montreal.

And Ducharme, now an assistant with the Vegas Golden Knights, was a class act when talking about Petry.

And why? Simply because he left the old stories in the past and, without saying anything noteworthy about the defenseman, spoke well of what he brought to the Habs back in the day. He didn’t have to.

Ducharme was keen to point out that in his final months in Montreal, Petry was affected by the fact that the defenseman was alone. His family, it will be recalled, was back in the States. #Pandemic

With his family far away, it’s not easy. He’s a good father who’s very close to his family.

So for him, having them far away like that was certainly a major challenge. It affected him both personally and on the ice. – Dominique Ducharme on Jeff Petry

Obviously, the Quebecer doesn’t know if Petry is in town to stay, but he is aware that the situation has changed with the Habs. He reminded us that Petry had nothing against Montreal per se, but that the pandemic has changed things.

He finally added this:

I wish him the best because he’s a good guy and he’s someone who can help a team. – Dominique Ducharme on Jeff Petry

I think it’s to the coach’s credit that he looks forward. He looks good in it because it’s ancient history. Instead, he’s concentrating on his next challenge in Vegas.

He’ll be leaving in a few weeks’ time for the Knights’ camp.

Meanwhile, on the Canadiens’ side, the club is obviously still considering its options in the Petry (and Casey DeSmith) files. Will he be traded soon?

The question remains.

In bursts

– Oh yeah?

– Good question: which transaction move from Kyle Dubas to Pittsurgh is the most intriguing?

– Will the Alouettes win tonight?

– Offense to be expected in the NHL.