Injuries: Kent Hughes worries about youth development

Ah, the wounds…

Name me a Habs player and I’ll probably name you a guy who has, in recent years, suffered an injury. With the possible exception of Nick Suzuki, this is true for many members of the club.

Some are less injury-prone than others (Samuel Montembeault and Johnathan Kovacevic are good examples), but for the most part, Habs players have been injured for a little over two years.

Cole Caufield, Arber Xhekaj, Juraj Slafkovsky, Jordan Harris, Kirby Dach, Alex Newhook, Kaiden Guhle, Justin Barron and Rafaël Harvey-Pinard are all players whose development has been stunted by injury – or more than one.

And I’m not even talking about the veterans.

When a young player is injured, it inevitably affects his development. And that’s something that Kent Hughes is well aware of, as he knows that youngsters need to play to progress. So he’s concerned that youngsters are getting injured so often.

#GoHabsGo GM Kent Hughes on injuries: I worry for the younger players’ development

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– The Sick Podcast – The Eye Test (@sickpodnhl) December 12, 2023

As mentioned on “The Sick Podcast – The Eye Test” recently, guys not playing 82-game seasons isn’t optimal for development.

It really isn’t.

And while you can learn from being in the stands, it’s not the same as playing. After all, you have to apply the concepts to see what you need to work on and what you don’t.

Of course, it’s logical to believe that Hughes was hoping for fewer injuries this season. The club has changed some members of its medical staff, but the injury list is still growing.

The GM said that an NHL player has to be successful in the long term, not just in short bursts. But to achieve this, a player must, of course, stay healthy.

It’s not right that this is still an issue in Montreal.

In bursts

– Owen Beck is excited about playing for Canada.

– Indeed.

– Training at 10:30 a.m. for the CH.

– Ouch.

– Of note.