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The Real Reasons Behind Derek Lalonde’s Arrival

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The Real Reasons Behind Derek Lalonde’s Arrival

Originally posted on Dose.ca | Last updated Jul 9, 2026 1:31 PM ET

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Martin St-Louis will have a new assistant coach behind the Canadiens’ bench next season: Derek Lalonde.

Lalonde will replace Trevor Letowski, whose contract expired on July 1.

The Habs are expected to make the announcement in the coming hours. Officially, the organization will say that Trevor Letowski wanted to spend more time with his family and that a hiring process began once Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton learned of Letowski's intention.

Is that really what happened? Honestly, I don't know. Often, “departures to spend more time with family” are actually not as voluntary as they seem. But then again, it's also possible that Letowski, 49, has had enough of the long trips and the fast pace of life in the NHL. He's been living the professional hockey lifestyle since 1997—it would be understandable if he wanted to enjoy a more home-centered pace of life.

Letowski has always been extremely respectful to everyone; I'd like to wish him all the best for the future.

Derek Lalonde's Experience

For the past two years, we've been saying that Martin St-Louis needs an assistant with more NHL coaching experience. There were even a few moments when we were all cheering the arrival of Gerard Gallant to support Martin St-Louis…

St-Louis is learning on the job. He's building his own plane while in flight, if you'll pardon the expression. He knows NHL hockey inside and out, but this is still his first experience as a professional coach. Remember: he was coaching kids before accepting the job in Montreal.

In last year's playoffs, he certainly could have benefited from having someone like Derek Lalonde by his side. Lalonde was an assistant coach with the Lightning (four years) and the Maple Leafs (one year), but he also served as head coach in Detroit for two and a half years. He's 53 years old and has been coaching for over 30 years. In short, coaching is his life.

Derek Lalonde knows a thing or two about coaching. (Credit: Getty Images)

After the Hurricanes' first two wins in the Eastern Conference Finals, he certainly could have convinced Martin St-Louis to make changes to his strategies and/or lineup.

He could have pushed for a player like Brendan Gallagher, for example…

He could have convinced the Habs to play a simpler style of hockey, particularly by dumping the puck deep into the opponent's zone more often…

He could have pushed to bring Arber Xhekaj back into the lineup, since the Habs players were getting hit too hard…

He could have told Martin St-Louis to play Josh Anderson more and Jayden Struble less…

In short, his experience definitely could have helped the Habs in the playoffs.

The doctor had clearly prescribed a dose of experience behind the Habs' bench; Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton have just addressed that.

Now all that's left is the second-line center, the physical and productive winger, the right-handed defenseman, and some grit on the bottom six…

Derek Lalonde's Specific Role

Lalonde will be Martin St-Louis's first assistant. If St-Louis has to be absent during the season, Lalonde will replace him.

In Tampa Bay, Lalonde was in charge of the Lightning's defensive system and penalty kill units.

In Toronto, he had the same responsibilities: the team's defensive structure and penalty-kill units.

Guess what? Trevor Letowski was primarily responsible for overseeing the penalty kill last season in Montreal. And the team was one of the worst in the NHL in that regard during the playoffs.

It's clear, then, that Lalonde is coming on board as the coach in charge of the penalty kill and the team's overall defensive system, among other things.

He won two Stanley Cups with the Lightning, during which time the team was dominant defensively and on the penalty kill. His arrival with the Canadiens should help the team continue its progress.

He's said to have an excellent feel for the games he coaches. That, too, won't hurt Martin St-Louis.