Pierre LeBrun shared some news on Wednesday afternoon, and it’s important. Martin St-Louis is going to get a contract extension from the Montreal Canadiens this summer, and Kent Hughes is on top of it.
LeBrun mentioned this in The Athletic. Extensions for St-Louis, John Hynes, and Spencer Carbery will be happening soon. The part about the Canadiens stands out.
Because right as this news broke, Montreal is struggling against Carolina in a playoff series that has shifted heavily.
The Canadiens are behind the Hurricanes 3-1. They lost 4-0 at the Bell Centre on Wednesday night, which is the kind of defeat that sends fans home before the game is even over.
The next game is on Friday in Raleigh. It’s a must-win for a team that finished the regular season with a record of 48 wins, 24 losses, 10 overtime losses, totaling 106 points and a goal difference of plus-27.
This makes the timing of the contract extension talk interesting. Hughes is supporting his coach, even while the star players are struggling in May.
Why Hughes is making a move with his coach now
Nick Suzuki has 16 points in 18 playoff games but has a minus-6 rating. Cole Caufield is at minus-8, and Juraj Slafkovsky is minus-7. The captain’s line is having a tough time against Carolina’s defense.
Still, the team management is looking at the bigger picture. Montreal went from a rebuilding team to a 106-point team in just two seasons with St-Louis. That progress is more important to Hughes than some rough games in May.
The Habs defeated Carolina three times during the regular season, including a high-scoring 7-5 victory on New Year’s Day. They have the talent to compete with this team. The problem is how they are executing their game plan.
Lane Hutson has scored 15 points in the playoffs, which is the second highest for players on the Montreal team. Ivan Demidov, who is 19 years old, has earned nine points in his first playoff experience. These players are for real.
People are questioning if St-Louis made the right decisions before the team struggled. In Game 4, the team didn’t score at all, and the coach has to take some responsibility for that.
Keeping him in position before Game 5 sends a strong message. No matter what happens in Raleigh, it shows that St-Louis is the coach for the long run.
There aren’t many options for coaches right now, and waiting until July could lead to issues. Other teams are looking for coaches. St-Louis is well regarded.
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