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The players are out of juice: Kent Hughes’ inaction hurts
Mathis Therrien
The players are out of juice: Kent Hughes’ inaction hurts
Credit: The Montreal Canadiens are no longer in the playoffs as of last night, while the Columbus Blue Jackets took the last spot in the East. They won a big emotional game, where they showed a lot of character and intensity to overcome two big deficits (0-3 and 3-5) and get two big points in a […]
The Montreal Canadiens are no longer in the playoffs as of last night, while the Columbus Blue Jackets took the last spot in the East.

They won a big emotional game, where they showed a lot of character and intensity to overcome two big deficits (0-3 and 3-5) and get two big points in a shootout.

At the Habs, it’s the opposite this week, as in three games, we showed no intensity and no character at the worst time of the season.

However, during the three games of last week, the Tricolore had shown everything the Blue Jackets showed last night.

The Habs had shown a lot of character to come back from behind against the Senators, Islanders, and Avalanche.

Why is it not the case this week?

Well, because the players are clearly exhausted and have no more energy in the tank.

We can really see it in each of the last three games that all the players on the team just don’t have any more juice, except maybe Lane Hutson.

The Habs’ comebacks in big games have greatly taxed the players, and we’re seeing the consequences now.

The players are tired, and this is transferring into a lack of cohesion, mental errors, little intensity, few scoring chances, and mediocre defensive play.

In short, the players are out of breath for the final sprint, after having given it their all to get back into the playoff race since the Olympic break.

The players have given it their all, but they didn’t get any help from their general manager, as the lineup was already very limited.

The top trio carried the team for a while, but now everyone is exhausted, and that’s where the Habs’ lack of depth really hurts.

However, Kent Hughes could have gone out and gotten some help at the trade deadline, but he didn’t.

One can seriously wonder if Hughes regrets not making the acquisition of a few depth players to give his coach more options and ammunition to finish the season.

Joel Armia, Josh Anderson, and surely several other players are playing hurt, and this is hurting the Habs’ performance.

So, adding one, two, or even three depth players to the lineup would have clearly helped the Tricolore.

With all the draft picks at his disposal, Hughes could have clearly gone out and gotten guys like Ryan Donato (who scored a hat-trick last night), Nico Sturm, and/or Mark Jankowski.

These are depth players who would have taken some pressure off the Habs’ current players, which would have allowed St-Louis to roll his lineup more.

In short, Kent Hughes chose not to make a choice between buying and selling, and this could hurt even more if the Habs don’t make the playoffs and finish in the “No Man’s Land”.

However, the players will still grow from all this experience and the mix that Kent Hughes wanted so much.

If we only think about that, this season is a success, given that the objective of the mix was achieved.

Let’s see if the players will be able to bounce back with 10 games left in the season.


Overtime

– The Chicago Blackhawks are signing two of their top prospects. They should play in the NHL this season.

– To read.

– Maybe.

– To follow.

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