The Canadiens meet with Gerard Gallant

Ask @MaximeTruman, I told him… Ask him if it’s big if you don’t believe me!!!!

– Georges Laraque (@GeorgesLaraque) November 11, 2024

Georges mentioned around dinner time that he had some very interesting information about the Canadiens that he was going to reveal on his show the next day (today). And he linked me to it a few minutes later…

I have some very interesting news about the @CanadiensMTL, I’ll share it with you on my show tomorrow on 91.9FM starting at noon!

– Georges Laraque (@GeorgesLaraque) November 10, 2024

So, what was Georges’ news?

As just revealed on BPM Sports, Kent Hughes and Martin St-Louis met with Gerard Gallant in a Toronto café a few hours before the game against the Maple Leafs on Saturday.

Why were they there? We don’t know. A source witnessed the meeting in question – even though the principals involved tried to do so away from curious onlookers – but was unable to hear what was said.

But we can speculate…

1. Kent Hughes and Martin St-Louis may meet with experienced candidates to support Martin behind the bench.

The Canadiens have lost their last six games and sit alone in last place in the entire NHL… even though a month and a half ago, the organization was telling us we’d be in the mix.

Seeing the GM and head coach take part in the meeting, and not the president of hockey operations, fits with that possibility.

If this is the case, it will be interesting to see whether Gerard Gallant (or another experienced candidate) will be called upon to support Martin St-Louis behind the Habs bench.

No one has been brought in to replace Alex Burrows behind the bench…

2. Maybe Martin St-Louis wanted to listen to criticism from a guy he dared to ask for advice

I don’t need to remind you of the Martin St-Louis quote, you all still have it in your heads…

It would be wise, when your team is (really) going nowhere, to ask a coach of Gerard Gallant’s calibre what he thinks of your coaching, of your club…

And what he’d do if he were in your shoes.

If Martin St-Louis really felt he needed to ask a veteran like Gallant for advice, that’s very mature of him. Acknowledging weaknesses and mistakes – and asking for help – is commendable.

Itremains to be seen whether Gallant was an advisor for a day, or whether the option of hiring him as a coach-consultant is on the table.

Reminder: the Canadiens hired Roger Grillo as a consultant-coach back in September (and we’re not sure what he does, but hey).

3. Kent Hughes, Martin St-Louis and Gerard Gallant just felt like drinking coffee together on Saturday afternoon… talking about anything and everything.

Forget it! 0 chance!

Who is Gerard Gallant?
Gerard Gallant is a familiar name in Montreal; he was Michel Therrien’s assistant with the Canadiens from 2012 to 2014. And he doesn’t speak French, before you ask…

He played in the NHL from 1984 to 1995, before moving into coaching. And he’s been coaching for over 25 years!

He was head coach of the Panthers (from which he was fired on the road, before taking a cab), the Golden Knights and the Rangers. He also played in the QMJHL, where he won two championships with the St. John Sea Dogs.

In short, he’s got experience behind the bench… and that’s exactly what Montreal is lacking right now. How do you hard-coach without losing your dressing room? How do you adjust during a match? How do you out-coach your opponents?

It should be noted that Martin St-Louis never played under Gerard Gallant in the NHL, and that Jeff Gorton was no longer with the Rangers when Gerard Gallant was hired by them.

It’s also worth noting that Gallant is from the Maritimes, and that it was easy for him tofly in and out of Toronto on a Saturday afternoon.

In closing, Gallant had signed a four-year contract with the Rangers in 2021. He’s available now, but the Canadiens would still have to deal with the Rangers if they decided to take Gallant on.

Gallant, 61, would love to get back behind an NHL bench. But would he be happy to be behind Martin St-Louis? God knows…

Overtime

– I hope some of my colleagues on the Canadiens beat dare to ask Martin St-Louis about this one after today’s game…

– If they could make ONE move as Habs GM, fans would hire an experienced assistant coach. So I guess they’re happy with Georges’ information this afternoon…

After 20% of the season, the Habs are dead last in the NHL. You’re the GM, what do you do?

– David Ettedgui (@EttedguiDavid) November 11, 2024

– Sport is a show. It’s entertainment. And my buddy Georges has figured out how to put on a show and entertain. #Marketing

This content was created with the help of AI.