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The Canadiens have exercised the club option on head coach Martin St. Louis’ contract, extending their bench boss through the 2026-27 season. St. Louis’ deal was slated to expire in the summer of 2025 without the two-year option.
At 48 years old, St. Louis is one of the youngest coaches in the league. Since taking over the rebuilding Canadiens from Dominique Ducharme midway through the 2021-22 season, St. Louis has managed a 75-100-26 record. That includes guiding the Habs to a 14-19-4 finish in 2021-22 after they went 8-30-7 under Ducharme and overseeing a marginal increase from 68 points last season to 76 points this year after ending their season with back-to-back overtime/shootout losses to the Red Wings.
Speaking with reporters today, GM Kent Hughes indicated more extensions could be coming after meeting with St. Louis’ staff tomorrow. Assistant coaches Alexandre Burrows and Trevor Letowski, as well as goaltending coach Éric Raymond, are not signed for 2024-25, per Sportsnet’s Eric Engels. Hughes said he doesn’t feel the need to add a more experienced name to St. Louis’ bench and will likely keep 2023-24’s crew intact moving forward, via TVA’s Renaud Lavoie.
The Laval, Quebec, native didn’t get a chance to suit up for his hometown team during his illustrious 1,134-game NHL career, but he’s been able to make his professional coaching debut in front of one of the largest markets in the league to largely positive results. Before being named Ducharme’s interim replacement in February 2022 and being given the permanent head coach title the following offseason, St. Louis’ only NHL staff experience came as a special teams consultant with the Blue Jackets for the back half of the 2018-19 season.
He hasn’t yet been given the chance to manage a playoff-contending roster, but with a top-10 prospect pool set to continue graduating over the remainder of his extension, he should get the chance before his option expires in three years. Perhaps his biggest accomplishment this season was guiding 2022 first-overall pick Juraj Slafkovsky to a breakout sophomore campaign, ending his season with 20 goals and 50 points while playing in all 82 games. He also presided over a legitimate improvement in the team’s defense and possession play. Their overall 5-on-5 CF% jumped from 45.4 in 2022-23 to 46.3 this year, and their expected goals against per game at 5-on-5 improved from 2.37 to 2.13 while also generating more offense.
As such, Canadiens management believes St. Louis is the man to guide the franchise to their first playoff appearance in the post-Carey Price era. He’ll need an assist along the way from Hughes in constructing a capable roster, but early on in his coaching tenure, it’s clear he’s jelled with the team’s young core.
More must-reads:
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- The '1976-77 Montreal Canadiens' quiz
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Chicago Blackhawks reportedly set to trade 25-year-old goaltender to Stars rival, Edmonton Oilers
The Chicago Blackhawks, a crowded goaltending situation and trade rumors involving the Edmonton Oilers have fans wondering if the Stars' rivals could soon upgrade their crease before training camp. With training camp approaching, Chicago general manager Kyle Davidson has five goalies under contract, including Spencer Knight, Arvid Soderblom, Drew Commesso, newly signed Stanislav Berezhnoy, and veteran Laurent Brossoit. Only two NHL roster spots are available, which has fueled speculation that Brossoit could be moved to a contender, with Edmonton emerging as a leading candidate. For Stars fans, seeing the Oilers potentially bolster their crease should raise eyebrows. Edmonton, fresh off a deep playoff run, is looking to avoid the same issues that hurt them late in the postseason. "The Blackhawks have too many goalies and not enough spots, and Brossoit's contract and experience make him a natural trade chip for a team like the Oilers."-Julien Trekker Chicago's goalie logjam and Berezhnoy's recent signing are detailed further at NHL.com. Dallas could see its rival upgrade as Blackhawks explore trading Laurent Brossoit Brossoit, 32, carries a $3.3 million cap hit for one more season. Drafted by Calgary in 2011, he's appeared in 140 NHL games, including time with Edmonton, Winnipeg, and Vegas, where he helped the Golden Knights win the Stanley Cup in 2023. While Chicago decides, Drew Commesso continues to push for NHL time after posting a .911 save percentage over 39 AHL games. For a deeper look at Commesso's performance, his full profile is on Elite Prospects. I think if Edmonton lands Brossoit or even Commesso, Dallas may have to plan around a deeper Oilers team come playoff time, especially given how tight the Western race looks on paper.
Bucks executive opens up on Giannis Antetokounmpo trade rumors
The Milwaukee Bucks' decision to waive-and-stretch Damian Lillard sparked even more Giannis Antetokounmpo rumors on social media. There were already reports that Antetokounmpo was considering his options and potentially forcing his way out of Milwaukee, and the Lillard move did little to alleviate the situation. Nevertheless, the weeks have gone by, and Antetokounmpo is still a Buck. More importantly, the team believes that's not going to change any time soon. "We have no indication that anything is really changing as far as our relationship with the player we think is the best in the world," a Bucks front office executive told Spotrac's Keith Smith. "We rebuilt on the fly, in a really challenging situation, but we think we did it as well as it could be done." Antetokounmpo trade rumors have cooled off around the league, and while anything can happen in the NBA, that doesn't seem likely at this point. "Do I think the star guys like Giannis (Antetokounmpo) or LeBron (James) are going to go anywhere? Nope. Is it possible? Sure is," said a Western Conference executive. Giannis chose to stay in Milwaukee with one of the most lucrative contract extensions in NBA history. He was overly critical of the team's effort last season, and another early playoff exit may have driven him to the edge. Even so, he's talked about how he wants to win "the right way," as opposed to chasing rings. That said, with head coach Doc Rivers' long list of questionable postseason performances and a championship window that could be closing right before their eyes, Giannis trade rumors will flood social media again if the Bucks get off to a slow start during the 2026-26 campaign.
Pelicans’ exec makes team's stance on Zion Williamson crystal clear
It’s wild how quickly the NBA narrative can flip. A year ago, Zion Williamson was in every trade rumor possible. People were questioning his health, his work ethic, even his future in New Orleans. And the Pelicans? They didn’t really deny any of it. It felt like both sides were one step away from walking. But things have shifted this offseason — quietly, but clearly. The Pelicans could’ve pulled the plug. Zion’s contract gave them outs, and the trade market might’ve still brought back some real value. Instead, they stuck with him. And based on what one of their own just said, they’re not just keeping him around — they’re still betting big on him. In a recent interview with Spotrac’s Keith Smith, an anonymous Pelicans executive made it crystal clear. “Zion is still our guy. We’re all in on him. We think he’s going to have a huge year. We’ve had some bad injury luck and some things that just haven’t worked out. This partnership hasn’t even come close to reaching our best yet.” That’s not something you say if you’re halfway in. They backed it up with their offseason moves, too. They traded CJ McCollum and brought in Jordan Poole, a high-usage creator who can take pressure off Zion. They drafted Jeremiah Fears with the No. 7 pick, a dynamic young guard. They added Kevon Looney, a reliable veteran who brings playoff experience and toughness. Those aren’t tear-it-down moves — those are “let’s try this another way” moves. Of course, Zion’s health is still the question. That never really goes away. He played just 30 games last season, but in those games he looked solid: 24.6 points, 7.2 rebounds and 5.3 assists per night on 56.7 percent shooting. The explosiveness was there. The playmaking was sharp. And the hope for New Orleans is that this time, he can finally sustain it. What’s interesting is how the front office is trying to create a better environment around him. Joe Dumars has stepped in to lead basketball operations and is reportedly building a closer relationship with Zion — dinners, real conversations, not just surface-level stuff. It feels like, for once, the team is trying to meet him halfway. It’s a risk, sure. But it’s a calculated one. The West is brutal and the margin for error is thin. Still, if Zion can stay healthy for 60 games, and if Poole finds a rhythm and guys like Trey Murphy and Herb Jones keep improving — this team has a shot to be in the mix. The quote from the exec says it all. They could’ve hit reset, moved on, cleaned house. But they didn’t. They’re still in. And now it’s on Zion to hold up his end of the deal. After everything that’s happened, they’re telling the world they still believe. Now it’s time to find out if they’re right.
Lakers Insider Urges Team to Make Major Change to Starting Five
The Los Angeles Lakers have been trying to improve their roster this offseason after getting bounced in the first round of the playoffs by the Minnesota Timberwolves. Since that moment, the Lakers have added Deandre Ayton, Marcus Smart and Jake LaRavia. These moves are designed to fill their biggest holes, which were starting center and perimeter defense. Now that those moves have been made, a Lakers insider believes that there needs to be a change made to the starting lineup in order for Los Angeles to maximize its potential. More news: Lakers Rumors: Dalton Knecht's Trade Value Has Taken Massive Hit, Says Insider Lakers insider Jovan Buha thinks that the Lakers should swap out Rui Hachimura from the starting lineup and put Marcus Smart as a starter instead. “I think that the move to me would clearly be to start Marcus Smart over Rui,” he said. “I think the one concern with that is just that Rui has tended to perform better as a starter than a bench player. But at the same time, I don’t think that the starting group as previously constructed was good enough defensively — was not even close to being good enough defensively." Hachimura was the Lakers' best perimeter defensive player, but he certainly wasn't an All-Defense-caliber player or anything like that. He was a solid guy who did his best on defense. This seems like an overreaction to signing a guy who won Defensive Player of the Year when his body wasn't completely breaking down. Starting three guards, especially one in Smart, who isn't the shooter the Lakers starve, might be problematic. More news: Marcus Smart Reveals Incredible Reason He Chose Lakers in Free Agency Los Angeles definitely needs better play on defense, but Smart can't be relied upon to be healthy for more than three weeks at a time. Hachimura has also performed much better as a starter than a bench guy. Starting Smart means that the Lakers are just giving up a spot on offense. He doesn't shoot well off the ball, and they're not going to take it out of Luka Doncic's hands. Smart would be better off running the second unit and coming in occasionally to help the starters when it comes to stopping the other team's best guard. More news: Former NBA All-Star Accuses LeBron James of Using Steroids Earlier in Career For more news and notes on the Los Angeles Lakers, visit Los Angeles Lakers on SI.
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