The news from the Bell Center is worrying.
According to information from the Gazette, Jeff Gorton’s patience is running out.
The Canadian’s sporting situation is disastrous: last in their division, last in their conference, and penultimate in the entire league.
In the executive boxes, the atmosphere is electric, and management can no longer ignore the storm that is coming.
Empty seats in the stands and declining television audiences are only making this critical situation worse, pushing management to urgently evaluate its options.
On the ice, the situation does not look like a promising reconstruction, but rather organizational chaos. The defenders are in distress, evolving in a system that they seem incapable of understanding.
Mike Matheson, supposed to be the defensive pillar, accumulates errors, leaving the inexperienced youngsters adrift. It’s not just a question of poor organization, but a real lack of talent and coordination.
Concern is growing among fans and analysts, who see a team without a backbone, without a leader capable of turning things around.
Up front, star forwards like Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Kirby Dach and Juraj Slafkovsky are struggling to stand out.
Caufield can certainly score, but his commitment on the ice is shameful, and for the others, the performances are simply disappointing.
The lack of involvement is obvious, to the point that even fans notice the lack of passion and energy on the bench.
With the exception of Brendan Gallagher, who leaves everything on the ice every shift, most players already seem disconnected before the games even end.
Proponents, like analysts, are fed up with the “reconstruction” excuse. We ask for patience, but seeing the team regress, this justification seems more and more hollow.
Gazette journalist Brendan Kelly sums up the frustration:
“It’s not a reconstruction, it’s a derailed train. »
He reminds us that reconstruction cannot be an excuse for all failures. It is no longer a question of blindly believing in Gorton and Hughes’ project, but of demanding accountability for decisions which seem, in retrospect, to be major strategic errors.
The selection of Juraj Slafkovsky, for example, is debated. The choice to overlook Logan Cooley, who shines today as a first-line center for the Arizona team, could well be one of the most costly missteps of this management.
The arrival of Alex Newhook, who is struggling to justify his place in the lineup despite significant playing time, adds additional weight to this mountain of disappointments.
Gorton, often seen as conciliatory and patient, today seems exhausted. Sources indicate that Gorton, whose reputation is for building strong teams, sees this situation as a personal failure.
Margaret Bélanger, for her part, is concerned about the image of the organization and the reaction of supporters to this spectacle.
With revenues falling and a Bell Center gradually emptying, it is becoming impossible to remain passive. It is said that the duo could consider drastic changes if the situation does not improve quickly, as the current results are deemed unacceptable.
At the heart of this debacle, coach Martin St-Louis, whose optimism towards his team’s performance no longer convinces anyone, seems lost.
One of the points that makes people cringe is the decision of Kent Hughes to exercise the two-year extension option on Martin St-Louis’ contract from this summer, thus extending his commitment until 2027.
Many wonder why Hughes didn’t wait to see how the season would go before renewing his faith in St. Louis with a two-year contract at $5 million per year. (10 million in total).
Patience could have made it possible to evaluate the coach’s results at the start of the season, rather than making a long-term commitment with a coach still in the learning phase.
According to rumors circulating, even Jeff Gorton, vice-president of hockey operations, would not have been in favor of this decision.
For Gorton, St. Louis’ third season could have been the perfect opportunity to gauge his true abilities without a safety net.
By extending now when he was in no hurry to do so (he could have refused to exercise the option), Hughes has in some way removed any immediate performance pressure on St. Louis, a luxury that few Rebuilding coaches can afford.
In doing so, it also deprives the organization of the opportunity for rapid change if results do not improve, potentially creating a block in the team’s progress.
Extending St-Louis for three seasons (2 additional seasons), until 2027, before even seeing this year’s results, suggests that Hughes made a hasty decision for a friend.
At 5 million per year, this contract is not without consequences. If the team continues to stagnate, this extension could represent a burden for the Canadian, both financially and publicly.
Bet St-Louis would have already lost his job if Hughes had not exercised the option.
For some, this premature choice also sends a message: Martin St-Louis does not need to prove his worth, at least not immediately.
The truth is that he has had everything in his mouth, without ever proving that he is a real NHL coach.
During the latest press conferences, his statements indicate a worrying gap between reality and his assessment.
“I liked the way we played tonight… The commitment is where I want it to be “, he said after the loss against the Devils, a statement that left fans and journalists perplexed.
The choice of an inexperienced coach like St. Louis, encouraged by Hughes and Gorton, is increasingly criticized.
Some wonder if this indulgence towards St. Louis is not one of the greatest errors of Gorton and Hughes, who seem to give him unwavering support. But voices are being raised to say that even friendship cannot justify such tolerance if the situation continues to deteriorate.
In this context, the rumor of a replacement by a more experienced coach could quickly become a reality if the results do not improve.
In the streets of Montreal and on social networks, the discontent of fans is evident.
For them, this season is far from embodying the management’s promises. They expected a minimum of progress, a fighting spirit, something concrete to prove that this reconstruction is more than just a word.
Instead, they watch helplessly as a team appears “apathetic” and without ambition.
For many, the dream of a return to the playoffs or even an improvement becomes a mirage, and fans begin to seriously doubt the future of this project.
The fans’ anger could well be the shock of drastic changes within the organization, as pressure mounts more and more on Gorton each day to take corrective action.
Kent Hughes will never fire Martin St-Louis. So Gorton will have to do it.
If nothing changes, this season risks going down as one of the darkest in the recent history of the Montreal Canadiens.
The anger of Jeff Gorton and Margaret Bélanger is not unfounded, and the duo knows that the image of the organization depends on it.
Now it’s about saving face, regaining the trust of the fans, and proving that this management is capable of making difficult decisions.
If this team doesn’t get its act together, the changes could be deeper and more radical than we’ve seen in decades.
The train may be derailing, but for Gorton and Bélanger, there is still time to put things right… or risk an unprecedented organizational catastrophe.
