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Martin St-Louis makes an announcement after loss to the Lightning
The Canadiens hit the ice Monday in Fort Lauderdale, just ahead of facing the Panthers on Tuesday night.
It's a rather rare off-day, and it changes the rhythm of a road trip. Instead of waiting around, the group brings everyone back into the routine, skates on.
On Sunday in Tampa Bay, the Habs fell 5-4 in a shootout. The club is still 20-12-6, good for third place in the Atlantic Division.
In this kind of stretch, a practice is mainly about resetting the fundamentals. You get back to your team habits, return to the locker room, then move forward with a structured day.
Martin St-Louis wants to keep the tempo
"Habs will practice in Fort Lauderdale this afternoon ahead of tomorrow night's game vs. Panthers."
- Priyanta Emrith
- Priyanta Emrith
The next appointment is clear on the calendar: Tuesday at 7 p.m. in Florida. It's the kind of game where you want to arrive already "switched on," not in restart mode.
By the numbers, Nick Suzuki leads the way with 42 points in 38 games. At 26 years old, he carries a $7.875M cap hit per season. Cole Caufield follows with 18 goals and 37 points in 38 games. At 24, he is signed at $7.85M. Juraj Slafkovsky has 28 points in 38 games. At 21, his contract comes in at $7.6M.
Samuel Montembeault has played 15 games, posting a 3.65 goals-against average and a .857 save percentage. At 29 years old, he carries a $3.15M cap hit-and with the Canadiens back to work in Florida, the question now is whether we will see him return to the net as soon as Tuesday.
In short, the message is simple: the break is over, even under the sun. The sun is there, but no one is here to tan.