Wednesday Habs Headlines: Rem Pitlick believes he can stick in the NHL

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Montreal Canadiens news and notes

• Determination fuels Rem Pitlick’s drive to remain with Canadiens. [Montreal Gazette]
• Inside captain Nick Suzuki’s crash course in French. [ESPN]
• Suzuki and Rafael Harvey-Pinard are facing their best development opportunities yet. [Sportsnet]
• The unrealized promise of Juraj Slafkovský’s first season, and what comes next, by David St-Louis. [EP Rinkside (Premium)]
• Anthony Richard would have liked a little more time in the NHL to acclimate, but believes that when he returns to the biggest stage, that he’ll be more comfortable. [La Presse]
• ‘It’s important to talk to people that you trust’ Josh Anderson, Johnathan Kovacevic, and Michael Pezzetta recently discussed mental health. [Montreal Canadiens]
• Despite his relatively advanced age, Alex Belzile never turned the page on his dreams of playing again in the NHL. [RDS]
• Laval is getting ready to host the AHL all-star game. [AHL]

Around the league and elsewhere

• “Nobody tanks because we have a weighted lottery. You’re not going to lose games to increase your odds by a couple of percentage points. That’s silly.” — NHL commissioner Gary Bettman [Montreal Gazette]
• Bettman also noted that the league’s investigation into the allegations of sexual assault against members of Canada’s 2018 World Junior Championship team is “very close to the end.” [La Presse]
• The hockey world is slowly making strides when it comes to player mental health. [Sportsnet]
• What really happens during NHL intermissions? The naked truth. [The Athletic]
• How one simple change let the Buffalo Sabres’ Rasmus Dahlin unlock his potential. [Sportsnet]
• Ten players thriving on the league’s worst teams. [Daily Faceoff]
• The top 10 teams that could make deals happen at the trade deadline. [The Athletic]
• It’s not every day that a random act of kindness leads to a lifelong friendship with a famous NHL player, but that’s exactly how Daniel Montour met Gino Odjick. [The Eastern Door]
• The NHL needs to take a page from the IIHF when it comes to goaltender interference. [The Hockey Writers]
• Mike Bossy was a goal-scoring machine and a special kind of dad. [The Athletic]
• Hockey takes a back seat for the Ottawa Senators as assistant coach Bob Jones battles ALS. [Sportsnet]
• A deep look at the Vancouver Canucks and where they go from here. [Sportsnet]