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Montreal Canadiens coach Martin St-Louis has returned to the organization after taking a leave of absence last week to be with his family. St-Louis is expected to coach his first game since leaving the team on Tuesday, March 26, when the Habs will face the Colorado Avalanche.
The Canadiens released an official announcement on their official website before Tuesday’s matchup.
“Everyone within the Canadiens organization has been very supportive of my wife, Heather, and me as we fully focused on our son Mason and his recovery from a hockey injury,” St-Louis is quoted in the Canadiens note.
“As parents, nothing is more important to us than our three sons, Ryan, Lucas, and Mason,” the coach continued.
St-Louis rejoins a Canadiens club boasting the sixth-worst record in the NHL through 70 games with 64 points including 26 wins, 32 losses, and 12 overtime losses for a paltry .457 points percentage.
Behind Martin St-Louis’ Absence
In St. Louis’ absence, the Canadiens designated Assistant Coach Trevor Letowski as the substitute in place to take over head coaching responsibilities. During this brief absence, the Habs recorded a 1-2-1 record.
The reason behind St. Louis’ leave wasn’t quite clear when the franchise announced his departure, but there were rumors about it having to do with the health of one of his three sons, 16-year-old Mason.
In an interview for TVA Sports (h/t @ChrisHabs360), veteran Canadiens defenseman David Savard let it slip that the team was playing that game, the first without St. Louis on the sideline, “motivated to secure a win for St. Louis son.”
Turns out the information was correct and confirmed by the franchise and the head coach in the official note they released on Tuesday.
St. Louis left Montreal to support Mason, who was injured during a youth hockey game and subsequently hospitalized due to complications from the injury.
“Mason suffered complications from the injury and was hospitalized,” read the statement. “His condition has since stabilized, and he is now recovering at the family home in Connecticut.”
Hall of Famer St-Louis is a Hart Trophy & Stanley Cup Winner
As sad as it is, St-Louis already lost his mother, France, during the 2014 Stanley Cup playoffs while he was playing for the New York Rangers. The Rangers made the Stanley Cup Final but eventually lost to the Los Angeles Kings 20 years after the Rangers won their fourth and last title in franchise history.
St-Louis, 48, took on the role of interim coach for the Canadiens following the firing of Dominique Ducharme in February 2022. He was named full-time head coach in June 2022 after signing a three-year deal with the Habs.
During his NHL career, St-Louis amassed a monster 1,033 points across 1,134 regular-season games with the Flames, Tampa Bay Lightning, and New York Rangers for an average of 0.91 points per game.
St-Louis conquered the Stanley Cup Finals in 2004 as a member of the Tampa Bay Lightning. He also won the Hart Trophy as the league MVP in that same 2004 season. He added his name to the golden books of the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2018, three years after he retired lastly donning the threads of the New York Rangers after spending time playing abroad for Lausanne HC in Switzerland.
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