Montreal Canadiens news and notes
- Did the Canadiens place too high expectations on themselves? [Journal de Montreal]
- Why the Canadiens have gotten off to such a slow start. [La Presse]
- Poor early records that NHL teams were able to recover from. [The Athletic]
- Martin St-Louis says the players are reacting to passes in the defensive zone rather than anticipating them. [Radio-Canada]
- Lane Hutson took the brunt of blame for the defensive issues versus the Rangers. [TVA Sports]
- Jake Evans knows how awful it is to have to ride out a losing season, and hopes the veterans can explain that feeling to the rookies to help avoid that happening again. [The Athletic]
- Serge Savard and Bob Gainey think the organization is heading in the right direction. [Montreal Gazette]
- Samuel Montembeault had trouble sleeping after Tuesday’s game, but says if he dwells on getting pulled in front of a home crowd he won’t be able to make the necessary improvements. [La Presse]
- Juraj Slafkovský was taking one-timers at practice yesterday. [RDS]
- Joel Armia, Justin Barron, Christian Dvorak, Kaiden Guhle, and Mike Matheson did not participate. [Canadiens.com]
- Ivan Demidov had a four-assist game versus Kunlun on Wednesday:
Around the league and elsewhere
- The Canadiens won’t face Robert Thomas on Saturday because the St. Louis Blues forward is out six weeks with a fractured ankle. [NHL.com]
- Utah defenceman Sean Durzi will need four to six months to recover from shoulder surgery. [NHL.com]
- An early check-in on the 2025 free agent crop. [Sportsnet]
- What is the next evolution of the NHL power play? [The Athletic]
- Kirill Kaprizov should be in the running for the Hart Trophy. [Sportsnet]
- Calum Ritchie was returned to the OHL by the Colorado Avalanche. [TSN]
- The number of officials available for sporting events in Quebec is dwindling as they leave the position due to the abuse they receive from coaches, players, and fans. [La Presse]
- Alex Meruelo the former owner of the Arizona Coyotes, is now seeking public funds to build an arena in Reno, Nevada. [Sportsnet]
