Center #2: Martin St-Louis Reveals His Criteria

Charles-Alexis Brisebois
Center #2: Martin St-Louis Reveals His Criteria
Credit: YouTube

Who will be the Canadiens' No. 2 center, behind Nick Suzuki?

As long as Kent Hughes doesn't make any moves, the solutions will inevitably come from within the organization. We're talking about Alex Newhook, Kirby Dach, Oliver Kapanen, Phillip Danault, and Jake Evans.

This morning, Martin St-Louis was asked about this by reporters covering the team. What did he say?

Basically, he mentioned that he has several options, but that the No. 2 center needs to be good at faceoffs and must be able to complement his wingers.

He also needs to be balanced on the ice.

If we analyze faceoffs using the 2025–2026 stats, it's clear that two of the five candidates stand out. However, those guys (Danault and Evans) have “bottom-6” written all over them—it's part of their job description.

Nick Suzuki wins about one out of every two faceoffs, but the other three are lower. Especially Dach, who wins only about two out of every five faceoffs…

(Credit: NHL.com)

Will the Canadiens trust Dach on a second line? I don't see how that could be the case after what the coach just revealed.

Is St. Louis capable of doing what he did in the playoffs and putting Evans on a top-6 line? I wouldn't rule out that scenario.

I wouldn't be surprised to see Newhook—who just had his contract extended by the Canadiens—slotted into that role.

Even if he doesn't necessarily win more faceoffs than the average Bear, he fits the coach's other criteria better: complementing his wingers and providing balance on the ice.

It's also worth noting that the short training camp will ensure the lines we see tomorrow are representative—even if they aren't set in stone just yet.

With a short camp (the schedule is available here) and two games in just three days, we'll quickly see what the coach has in mind for his players.

The camp will be divided into three teams (A, B, and C), and the first two groups will play on Saturday. Group A will play at home, and Group B will take the ice in Toronto.

So right away, the coach will want to build chemistry among his players. That's why I'm looking forward to seeing who plays in the top six tomorrow… keeping in mind that it doesn't mean everything, but it will be a big clue.


In a nutshell

– Kaiden Guhle: The coach isn't worried.

– Hires in New Jersey.

– Max Domi failed his physical. That's to be expected: he's in poor shape.

– Note this.

– Hello.

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