Logan Mailloux showed some good stuff in the Canadiens’ 82nd and final game of the season. He was pretty good at everything, without excelling at anything. Now that’s what we call a jack of all trades… and a master of none.
He skates well, he sees the game well, he has a good shot, he didn’t really get caught defensively, he hits… but if I asked you to name the most important quality of Mailloux’s game, what would you tell me?
Who is the real Logan Mailloux?
WhileAlex Burrows sees Shea Weber in Mailloux, Simon “Snake ” Boisvert only sees him as a potential sixth NHL defenseman.
Note that I have the same rating as the Snake… but in regards to Justin Barron, not Logan Mailloux. #Hehe
Still, I was (pleasantly) surprised that we didn’t hear much about Mailloux’s “past” this week. Good, because it means there’s still room for forgiveness and redemption in our increasingly moralistic and “perfect” society.
Mostly, we’ve been talking about Mailloux’s skills on the ice… and his ability to speak French. To speak Québécois, even!
Several media outlets hit a statistical home run by reprinting the short interview Mailloux gave in French during the first intermission on Tuesday. We decided not to write an article about Mailloux speaking French, at DLC… because he’d done the same thing at the beginning of September 2023, at the end of the same month, last January and in March.
It’s all the rage in Quebec: an English-speaking Canadiens player who speaks French!
Several players took a few French lessons over the course of the season, courtesy of Chantal Machabée. What a great initiative!
However, we haven’t really heard them speak French in public, except perhaps for a quick “merci tout le monde” at the end of an interview. What a shame…
I was told a few days ago that Nick Suzuki was really fluent in French; that hearing him speak in the language of Molière was impressive.
So why doesn’t he ever speak French at his press briefings? Why does he never give interviews in French? I’m told he’s embarrassed and afraid of making a gaffe.
No, Suzuki isn’t the most comfortable with a microphone – his post-game speech at center ice was short on Tuesday night – but there would be nothing but positives to come out of a French-language interview with the Habs’ English-speaking captain. No one would dare criticize the effort.
It would please the fans, Réjean Tremblay, the P.Q. and PSPP! In short, it would have the opposite effect of the jerseys worn by the Voltigeurs players…
Bob Gainey has never been criticized for putting a little English into his French. The effort has always been recognized.
Saku Koivu and Carey Price were apparently capable of holding a (basic) conversation in French, especially Koivu. But they never spoke French in public.
I think Nick Suzuki should seize the opportunity presented to him and dare to answer a few questions in French in September (posed by the journalist of his or her choice). The captain’s effort would be applauded by many, and his popularity/partisan appreciation would only increase.
It’s cool to be told that Nick Suzuki’s French is good… but it would be even cooler to hear him speak French, period!
In brief
– Matias Coccaro out 8 to 12 weeks. And reasons to be worried about Josef Martinez’s injury…
Coccaro, Martinez, Vilsaint, Opoku… so CF Montreal will have to rely on Sunusi and Toye to put it in. At least, Vilsaint is a few days away from returning and Opoku, a few weeks…
– Congrats guys! Great project! Great podcast!
– Will David Perron leave Michigan?
– Not to be missed from noon to 3pm.
– The Coyotes players will visit Salt Lake City next week.
– Good thinking.
– A name to watch in Toronto.
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