Nothing is going well for the Montreal Canadiens.
After a bitter defeat against the Los Angeles Kings, the team is faced with a series of bad news that puts Martin St-Louis in an extremely delicate situation.
The recall of Logan Mailloux on Friday morning underlines the seriousness of the injuries affecting the defensive brigade.
The loss of Kaiden Guhle is a big blow for the Montreal defense. The young back, injured in the upper body after a violent check by Adrian Kempe in the neutral zone, is now evaluated daily. Although he finished the game, his absence during training in Brossard fueled concerns.
Veteran Mike Matheson, also absent from practice, was given a day of treatment after leaving the game against the Kings early.
Despite these absences, Matheson should travel with the team to New York to face the Islanders, but the situation of Guhle remains worrying, he who will remain in Montreal.
Managing the rearguard therefore becomes a headache for Martin St-Louis, who also has to deal with the return of Jayden Struble.
The latter is returning from a lower body injury that kept him out of the first five games of the season. His return is not enough to mask the chaos that reigns in the Canadian’s defensive brigade.
As if the defensive woes weren’t enough, Slovak striker Juraj Slafkovsky left training worryingly.
After making a few throws, Slafkovsky, visibly in pain, ended his session before heading to the locker room.
Everything suggests that he was hit in the upper body (shoulder), adding another dark cloud over the Canadian.
Slafkovsky is now a source of concern for the organization. His absence could further complicate the task of the team, already struggling with an attack that is struggling to find its rhythm.
The recall of Logan Mailloux illustrates the extent to which the Canadian is in crisis management mode. At only 21 years old, Mailloux is enjoying his second stay with the big club after playing a game at the end of last season, where he collected an assist.
Cut at the last moment of training camp this year, he quickly proved his worth with a four-point performance in the first game in the American League, confirming that he remains an interesting option for the Habs.
However, the recall comes with added pressures for the young defender, who will have to navigate criticism and high expectations.
His journey is marked by off-ice controversies, and each opportunity with the Canadian is crucial for his development and his future in Montreal.
It should not be swallowed up in your storm,
With a decimated defense and key players like Slafkovsky potentially injured, Martin St-Louis sees his start to the season quickly tipping into a critical situation.
Expectations are immense in Montreal, and fans will not hesitate to express their dissatisfaction if the team gets bogged down in the standings.
This match against the Islanders is already shaping up to be a decisive…and worrying test.
Every decision St. Louis makes will be scrutinized, and uncertainty over the health of its star players puts the head coach in an uncomfortable position.
Guhle’s absences and Matheson’s condition force the organization to improvise, and recalling Mailloux could be a risky bet.
The general impression is that the Canadian risks spending another season in the cellar of the rankings. Injuries accumulate, performances are insufficient, and the group struggles to find stability both on the ice and in the room.
The concerns around Slafkovsky only amplify the feeling of disaster at the start of the season.
The patience of fans has its limits, and Kent Hughes, like Martin St-Louis, will have to quickly find solutions to prevent the season from getting bogged down from the start.
If nothing changes, murmurs of a deeper rebuild could soon become demanding cries demanding drastic changes behind the bench.
Saturday against the Islanders, the Canadian will have no choice but to pull himself together. But with so much uncertainty, the team is already on a tightrope.
Martin St-Louis is experiencing his first real storm. We feel like things are going to go wrong.
