“Tomorrow is a big match for us”: The subtle message from St-Louis to his players

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6…

Obviously, you noticed that I can count up to six. But six is also the number of goals that were scored in the third period of yesterday’s game against the Pittsburgh Penguins.

It’s unacceptable.

One could expect that Martin St-Louis would punish his guys at practice this morning, but he did not.

He yelled loudly at times and stopped a few drills to talk to his players, and that was it.

This is far from the first time MSL has stopped a drill to talk to his guys this morning.

And let’s just say the coach doesn’t look super satisfied with what he sees… @DLCoulisses pic.twitter.com/1hUBdOHJg3

— Marc-Olivier Cook (@Cook_Marco) December 13, 2024

The coach addressed the media after practice and said he liked the effort of his players today.

But in his comments, Martin St-Louis also sent a subtle message to the players: tomorrow, they better be fit.

The coach is aware that the chain arrived yesterday, but he expects to see his club bounce back against the powerful Jets in Winnipeg:

Tomorrow is a big game for us. – Martin St-Louis

Follow the media availability at Canadiens practice

Tune in now to live Canadiens media ops from practice#GoHabsGo https://t.co/AiqhZa3k4c

— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) December 13, 2024

I would have liked to see Martin St-Louis get angry after yesterday’s game in the press conference.

But he decided to go for calm, as has (too) often been the case since the beginning of the season.

That said, there must be something that changes tomorrow if the Canadiens get their tails kicked again.

Just because the club had won three out of four games (before yesterday’s) doesn’t mean the players have the right to give up on the ice, and what bothers me is that this has been happening often since the beginning of the season. And if the coach continues to accept those moments, the players will never understand from their side.

Martin St-Louis describes yesterday’s third period as a misstep… But you can’t win or progress when those so-called missteps are frequent, as we’re seeing right now.

All of this to say we will see how the team responds tomorrow, and if we can trust Martin St-Louis, it should be better than last night at the Bell Centre.

Although, it would be hard to do worse…

In brief

– The Hawks aren’t wasting any time.

Frank Nazar is centering the second line with Taylor Hall and Tyler Bertuzzi. He’s also on PP1. He and Bedard were hashing out responsibilities between drills.

— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) December 13, 2024

– Love for Brad Marchand.

Asked Bratt which PK opponent he admires:

A: Brad Marchand

«He’s one of the toughest players to play against, how hard he pressures when you have the puck on the (PP). I look to a player like that and say ‘How can I be this player? How can I create as much miscommunication?’»

— Amanda Stein (@amandacstein) December 13, 2024

– A fine for Josh Norris.

Josh Norris of the @Senators has been fined $2,000 as supplementary discipline under NHL Rule 64 (Diving/Embellishment).

Details: https://t.co/q6YBkOAw6r pic.twitter.com/j6jiSQ68EM

— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) December 13, 2024

– The Hurricanes are still looking for a goalie.

Goalies available? The Canes are still searchinghttps://t.co/F4aM2U3seT

— RDS (@RDSca) December 13, 2024

– Not bad.

The Canadiens will finish the year in 6thhttps://t.co/SlpFIbwCxZ

— RDS (@RDSca) December 13, 2024