Tonight, for the first time since the start of the Montreal Canadiens’ chaotic season, eyes are not on Martin St-Louis.
Usually, after a humiliating loss or disappointing performance, fans and analysts call for the head coach to be fired.
After the 3-2 overtime loss against the Utah Hockey Club, St-Louis should still have been targeted by the media, especially since the CH only shot 13 times on net and was given another hockey lesson.
But this evening, it’s another man who is in the crosshairs: Kent Hughes. The general director, although chosen as the architect of reconstruction, is now seen as the main architect of a real national debacle.
The evening took a dramatic turn when Logan Cooley literally danced around Juraj Slafkovsky. The latter, first overall pick in 2022, never seemed able to compete.
Poor Slafkovsky played barely 11 minutes tonight, the least used player.
Cooley, selected immediately after him, demonstrated quite the opposite: speed, creativity and confidence. While Cooley multiplied the magic on the ice with 22 minutes of playing time, Slafkovsky wandered like a shadow, unable to keep up with the pace on CH’s 4th line.
It’s the ultimate humiliation for Kent Hughes, who took the risky gamble of selecting Slafkovsky first overall.
Two years later, this bet seems to be a monumental failure. Slafkovsky never found his feet in the NHL.
Ghost of a player who was presented as a future pillar, he today represents one of the most controversial decisions in the recent history of CH.
As if that wasn’t enough, Matvei Michkov continues to shine in the spotlight. The Russian, avoided by several teams during the 2023 draft due to questions about his KHL contract, is now the favorite for the Calder Trophy, awarded to the best rookie in the league.
His creativity, offensive flair and immediate impact place him among the most electrifying young players in the NHL.
Meanwhile, David Reinbacher, the fifth pick in the same draft, is stuck on the sidelines after a serious injury.
Hughes had banked on the Austrian defender as a centerpiece of his reconstruction plan. But Reinbacher’s prolonged absence has highlighted the precariousness of the bet, and several experts are beginning to wonder if he will not become the Kirby Dach of defenders: a player whose injuries and irregularity will limit the impact.
Kirby Dach, in fact, perfectly embodies the failure of Kent Hughes’ reign. Acquired at a high price in exchange for a 13th overall pick obtained for Alex Romanov, Dach was to be the long-awaited second-line center.
But today, Dach is nothing like the player fans were hoping for. Injuries, lack of consistency and disappointing performances have marked his time in Montreal and it begs the question whether he is truly an NHL player as we speak.
Worse still, this transaction cost the Canadian a chance to draft a young talent like Jonathan Lekkerimaki.
Hughes gambled on a player already struggling in Chicago, and the decision haunts the organization today.
Where Martin St-Louis often served as the main culprit, Kent Hughes generally escaped direct criticism.
But tonight, that dynamic changed. Fans are no longer naive. They see clearly that Hughes’ decisions have led the team to a dead end.
Juraj Slafkovsky collapses. First overall pick in 2022, but does not display the level of an elite player. Even less the level of a player who will pocket $7.6 million per year spread over 8 years.
David Reinbacher collapses before even playing. Chosen before Michkov, he is already hampered by injuries, fear in his stomach when he plays and an obvious lack of “swag” on a sporting and social level.
Kirby Dach is already finished. Physically and mentally. A costly acquisition that did not bear fruit.
We could go on like this for a long time.
More than a series of bad decisions, it is a country club culture that seems to have taken hold in Montreal under the leadership of Kent Hughes.
We are talking about a team without a clear identity, where young players are neither protected nor pushed to excel.
Martin St-Louis, although criticized for his sometimes too soft approach, was never equipped to succeed.
Hughes provided him with an unbalanced team, made up of players who were injured, overrated or ill-prepared for the best league in the world.
CH supporters have had enough. They see other teams, like the Sharks and Flyers, advancing through smart draft picks and clear management.
Even though these teams also lose more often than not, we can see that the rebuild will eventually pay off.
In Montreal, we seem condemned to eternal reconstruction, without concrete plan or direction.
Tonight, the calls for change focus on Kent Hughes. For the first time since his arrival, he is the one who is seen as the real problem. Fans are demanding action, not empty promises.
Kent Hughes was presented as the man for the job, the one who would bring the Canadian back to their past glory.
But today, his decisions seem to have buried the team even deeper. The supporters, frustrated and disillusioned, no longer wait for promises of “development” or explanations on patience. They want results.
The Bell Centre, once the temple of hockey, has become a theater of disillusionment. And tonight, the spotlight is not on Martin St-Louis, but on Kent Hughes, the real person responsible for this disaster.
The man who was supposed to right the ship seems to have lost his compass. With a team in disarray, poorly supervised young people, and questionable decisions at all levels, Hughes is seen as the main person responsible for the current slump.
The Montreal Canadiens, an organization proud of its history, deserve better. Fans, tired of seeing their team stagnate, are demanding answers and concrete actions.
And for the first time, they’re looking at Kent Hughes as the real problem.
Time is running out for the general manager as the patience of fans and media is quickly running out.
