Ever since their surprise run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2021, things haven't exactly gone the Montreal Canadiens way. They fired Dominique Ducharme in the 2021-22 campaign despite the fact he led them to the Final the season before, and ended up replacing him with Martin St. Louis. And yet, while the Canadiens are still at the bottom of the Atlantic Division, the team has been moving in a positive direction since St. Louis took over.
Montreal responded to St. Louis replacing Ducharme in 2022 by going 14-19-4 over the final stretch of the season, and they have increased their point total over the ensuing two seasons under his leadership. While they obviously would like to be in the playoffs sooner rather than later, it seems like St. Louis is having a positive impact on the team, which led to the two-year option in his contract getting exercised.
Via Frank Seravalli:
“Canadiens announce they've exercised the option on coach Martin St. Louis' contract for two more seasons. That means St. Louis is now under contract for the next three seasons, expiring June 30, 2027.”
Canadiens showing their faith in Martin St. Louis
St. Louis already had one year left on his deal initially, so this option makes it so that he will be coaching the Canadiens through the 2027 campaign. Obviously, he could sign a new extension before then, or on the other end of the spectrum, he could get fired if things go downhill, but it's a good show of faith from the franchise given how St. Louis came in and helped stabilize a sinking ship.
Montreal has seen a core group of players led by Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, and Juraj Slafkovsky emerge as young stars in the league, and they have provided the team a foundation from which they can build off of. Bringing in more established veteran talent to help round things out is crucial, but the base for success has been set by the Canadiens.
With this move in place, St. Louis is going to be tasked with taking Montreal to the next level. They have already proven they can be competitive, but now they have to find a way to break through and make it back to the playoffs. That's obviously going to be easier said than done, but St. Louis has done a good job of getting the team to this point, and he is reaping the benefits of his hard work.
Now that he has three years left on his contract, St. Louis has a bit of a buffer to work with when it comes to getting the Canadiens back to the promised land. The results may not be immediate, but Montreal is showing that they are intent on sticking things out and giving St. Louis a chance to make things work, and it will be interesting to see if he is able to produce the desired results next season.
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