Michel Therrien has coached in Montreal before, but he was a rookie coach. When he was introduced in the summer, he promised a calmer, more professional coach than the one we saw last time.
But Therrien isn’t sofff on his players, he expects nothing but the best. He rides his players hard, especially the guys he has high expectations of.
Fitness is a big thing for Therrien, and it was for Jacques Martin as well, but perhaps he wasn’t quite as strict as Therrien may be. The locker room motto this year is “No excuses”, a very Therrien motto. He’s putting his stamp on the Canadiens right away, but what should we expect?
Will the Habs get off to a great start, or will it be a stumbling start? A healthy Andrei Markov to start the year for the first time since 2008-09 should help, unless P.K. Subban is busy holding out for a better contract.
A slow start could be the end of any playoff hopes, so what kind of effect will a hard ass coach have? Is it a good or bad thing in this shortened season?
