Jeff Gorton confides that one of the Habs trades was made because of Martin St-Louis
Since the arrival of Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton at the helm of the Habs, we have begun to see a certain change in culture within the team. And this change has taken a higher gear since Martin St. Louis is behind the bench.
As reported by my colleague Christian Matte of Marqueur.com, Gorton was on TSN 690 this week and he went on a rant about the Habs' head coach.
Basically what Gorton is stating is that certain players were able to increase their trade value and allow Kent Hughes to get the most in return and that St. Louis had a lot to do with that.
One trade in particular that jumps out is the Artturi Lehkonen, for Justin Barron and a second round pick. The Habs wouldn't have received as much and probably wouldn't have completed the trade without the input of the new interim head coach and the "boots" he gave the Finnish winger.
St. Louis has really been able to get the best out of his players, especially a guy like Lehkonen (before the deadline) and he is proving that he is an NHL worthy coach.
The reason Lehkonen has been able to bring in so much is (in part) because of St. Louis, and for Chiarot, who also had a really incredible run just before he was traded.
Would the trades that Kent Hughes completed at the deadline have brought in as much if Dominique Ducharme had stayed behind the bench?
It's hard to say, but St. Louis' contribution certainly helped the organization in the rebuilding process by getting some elements that we would never have thought of. Perhaps this process has even taken a higher gear.
A really interesting interview:
| POLL | ||
AVRIL 7 | 477 ANSWERS Jeff Gorton confides that one of the Habs trades was made because of Martin St-Louis What other player would you like the CH to trade that increases his value by the end of the season? | ||
| Price | 93 | 19.5 % |
| Petry | 182 | 38.2 % |
| Hoffman | 102 | 21.4 % |
| Armia | 100 | 21 % |
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