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Clearly, the chants from Habs fans didn't convince Dylan Larkin and his entourage to agree to a trade to Montreal. Larkin and his wife still have the city of Montreal on the athlete's no-trade list.
Will that change? Renaud Lavoie and Elliotte Friedman refuse to close the door entirely, but let's just say the chances remain slim.
Why is Dylan Larkin—who trained with Cole Caufield over the summer and was practically traded to the Habs last August—categorically refusing to join a Canadian team? Of course, there's the anti-American sentiment that exists in Canada, especially since Donald Trump's election (which coincided with the Four Nations Tournament), but there's more to it than that.
Dylan Larkin's wife hasn't heard good things about Canada.
From whom? It's a safe bet that what she heard came from Julie Petry, Jeff Petry's wife.
The two women are friends and neighbors. Kenzy Larkin (née Wolfe) appeared on Julie Petry and Cat Toffoli's podcast Never Offside last year. Their friendship and closeness are evident throughout the episode.
“We're always together. She's my neighbor. She's my friend. She's my captain.” – Julie Petry, on Kenzy Wolfe
Two years ago, Anjum Rajonno (Sportskeeda) wrote an article describing just how close the Petry and Larkin families are to one another.
Where did this friendship come from? When he was traded to the Red Wings (by Norman Flynn Kent Hughes), Jeff Petry moved in near the Larkins. He stayed there for two years before packing his bags and heading to Florida and Minnesota.
It's clear that at some point over the summer, Kenzy Larkin asked Julie Petry what it was like to play in Montreal…
Let me remind you that:
1. In January 2022, Julie Petry left Quebec because of our healthcare system. She left her husband in Montreal to return south of the border, where her children felt better mentally. Reminder: The rest of the world had pretty much moved on from COVID-19, but not Quebec.
2. Two years earlier, she had criticized the media and Montreal fans.
3.
In January 2022, Julie Petry lashed out at Justin Trudeau and the media, while supporting the Canadian truckers' Freedom Convoy
. #COVID19
4.
In April 2022, she described how some Canadiens fans—whom she considers more like trolls than actual fans—knew no bounds
. Many use Instagram's private messaging to target people they hate.
All this to say that the answers Kenzy Wolfe received to the questions she asked Julie Petry certainly didn't convince her. Even after some applause on Saturday at the Bell Centre…
Yes, the Montreal market can be intimidating. Especially for an American family in 2026! It seems like people have lost their minds with the pandemic… and Donald Trump's election.
Overtime
I can't wait to see Owen Beck in action tonight. However, Beck has recorded just one assist in four games with the Rocket.
Meanwhile, Laurent Dauphin (8 points), Sasha Pastujov (5 points), Alex Belzile (4 points), and Brett Berard (3 points) are all off to a strong start to the season. I'm willing to believe that Martin St-Louis needs someone to play with Jake Evans and Kirby Dach on the fourth line—not a guy to play in the top 6—but a player like Belzile would have been far more deserving of this call-up.
As for Laurent Dauphin, they could have offered him an NHL contract yesterday, placed him on waivers, and then recalled him today.
By calling up Beck instead of the player who deserved it most, the Canadiens are taking a risk. The culture the Habs are trying to instill in Montreal and Laval is based on meritocracy. Here, it feels more like they did a favor for one of the organization's draft picks.
That's not how it's supposed to work.
