When the Montreal Canadiens hired Martin St. Louis as their new head coach, the decision was quite shocking. No one was disputing what St. Louis did as a professional athlete. He is a Stanley Cup Champion and a Hockey Hall of Famer with a Hart Memorial Trophy, two Art Ross Trophies, and three Lady Byng Memorial Trophies, but prior to taking the job with the Canadiens, St. Louis had no professional-level coaching experience. His only experience in coaching was with his three sons’ high school team in Connecticut, but four years later, Kent Hughes’s and Jeff Gorton’s gamble paid off, as the Canadiens are off to the Eastern Conference Final, earlier than people might have expected, and St. Louis deserves a lot of credit.
Early growing pains for St. Louis
St. Louis took over the team during the 2021-22 NHL season, following the firing of Dominique Ducharme, who coached the team to a Stanley Cup Final appearance just a year prior. Ducharme went 8-30-7 prior to his firing, and when St. Louis took over as interim head coach, it was essential for the start of the Canadiens rebuild. Despite making it to the Stanley Cup Final the year before, the team was not extremely different. The losses of captain Shea Weber and franchise hero Carey Price due to career-ending injuries were too much for them to overcome. Despite the Canadiens finishing the season with the worst record in the NHL, St. Louis was signed to a three-year extension and officially became the head coach of the Canadiens.
The Canadiens’ play dramatically improved once St. Louis took charge, and while it did not translate to more wins, the team’s young players took a step forward in their development. Specifically, Cole Caufield, who looked like a completely different player once St. Louis took charge. Caufield struggled early in the season, spending some time with the team’s AHL affiliate, the Laval Rocket. Caufield had one goal in 30 games while Ducharme was the head coach, but when St. Louis took over, his ice time increased, and he finished the year with 23, tied for second among rookies.
The Canadiens continued with their rebuild, adding Juraj Slafkovsky, Lane Hutson, David Reinbacher, Jacob Fowler, Ivan Demidov, and Michael Hage over the next three drafts, quickly putting together one of the most talented teams in the NHL. Montreal had an influx of young players with star potential, and it was up to St. Louis to develop and get the best out of them. The 2024-25 season was the team’s big step forward, making the playoffs for the first time since the 2020-21 season, but it was not a conventional road to get there.
Montreal was on the outside looking in following the 4 Nations Face-Off, and there were real discussions of trading veteran upcoming free agents to recoup assets to minimize the losses if they were to leave in free agency. Hughes and Gorton ultimately decided to keep the band together, and the players repaid them for their trust. The Canadiens went on a six-game winning streak at the end of March, putting them firmly in a playoff position. Montreal would go on to clinch a playoff spot on the final day of the season, becoming the youngest team in NHL history to do so, with an average age of 25.95. The Canadiens would go on to lose their first-round matchup against the Washington Capitals, but the season as a whole was a giant step forward in the right direction.
Canadiens run to the Eastern Conference Final
After the success of the previous season, the Canadiens had bigger expectations coming into this year. Missing the playoffs was not an option, and if it were to be considered successful, Montreal needed to make it past round one. The Canadiens did not just get one series win; they got two. They defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning and Buffalo Sabres in seven games. Now, even if the Canadiens bow out to the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final, the season is already a success. Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Juraj Slafkovsky, and Lane Hutson all had career years. Montreal had multiple rookies get votes for the Calder Memorial Trophy, with Demidov finishing in second for the award. However, the biggest success story might be St. Louis growth as a head coach.
St. Louis has brought a calming presence to the Canadiens' locker room, but is also not afraid to celebrate with his team when they accomplish something as a group. We have seen this in full effect during the Canadiens playoff run. In both series, they had an opportunity to close out the series in Game 6 and came up short. St. Louis’ trust in his group never wavered, and he has continuously told the media and fans that he believes in his group’s ability to “bounce forward.” He has taught this group to never stop fighting, an attitude that has stuck with him since his playing days.
St. Louis mentioned after the Game 7 win against the Lightning that he tries not to spend too much time in the locker room, saying it is the players' room, but after the win, he wanted to spend it with them. He added, “I feel like you can’t take the player out of me.” The player side of him and everything he had to overcome to achieve what he was able to achieve is what makes him a great head coach, and it is clear now that Hughes and Gorton saw that in him before anyone else did. He was the perfect coach for this team and has grown alongside them throughout this journey.
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