What happened to Joel Armia? The guy who spent two trips to Laval this fall has become practically indispensable in recent weeks.
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Easter may be early this year, but the resurrection of the tall, blond, blue-eyed boy is surprising.
“Army is in a good place mentally,” said Martin St-Louis, after the narrow defeat at the hands of the Bruins on Thursday.
During this match, the dark Finn had one of his busiest evenings of the season. On the ice for 17 min 53 s, he worked to counter the Boston attack, especially short of a man.
Photo Martin Chevalier
And the pressure he exerted in enemy territory forced some turnovers or hasty moves which allowed Alex Newhook and Joshua Roy, his linemates, to continue the attack.
“Several players have a lot of talent, but their mental situation prevents them from reaching their potential,” continued the Canadian head coach on the same subject. It’s not even a question of effort. When you are not in a good place mentally, you are often more tired, you are less motivated.”
“Currently, we are in a society that places a lot of emphasis on this [la santé mentale]. It’s the same thing in sport. This is one of the main reasons why Armia is playing well,” he continued.
Constructive consultations
It is true that problems related to mental health are less and less taboo. Even in the world of sport. For the Canadian, we only have to think of Jonathan Drouin and Carey Price, who did not hesitate to ask for help.
Well aware of this reality, the Habs hired Jean-François Ménard as a mental performance coach a little over a year ago. The thirty-year-old came to the organization with a wealth of experience acquired from, among others, Cirque du Soleil artists and a few Olympic medalists.
In a rare appearance before the media at the beginning of the week, Armia explained how his consultations with Ménard are constructive to him.
“I always dwelled too much on the mistakes I made. It was my great weakness, he said. Now I forget them more quickly and I concentrate more easily on the next presence. Everyone makes mistakes.”
Perked up by his trio
So much for the mental aspect. But that’s possibly not all. His resurrection coincides with Newhook’s return to play and Roy’s second recall. The three have formed the Canadian’s second unit since the March 11 meeting against the Blues.
“They are three players with different styles who complement each other well. There’s speed in the middle [Newhook], Army plays good hockey. He has good size and has a good throw. Roy is intelligent on the ice, described St-Louis. He is always in the right place. He understands the balance you need on the ice.”
During these 15 games, this unit contributed only seven goals at even strength. Let’s say that in a properly constituted formation, it would make a good third line.
Cohesion and dedication
But where Armia performs better is in numerical inferiority. His work is no stranger to the perfect streak of 17 for 17 in the last six games. During this period, he and Jake Evans were the two most used forwards short of a man for the Canadian. And by far. Moreover, they occupy first and fourth place respectively in the circuit.
“We’ve been playing together on the same unit for a while now. Thanks to that, we have better cohesion,” Evans commented on Wednesday, to explain the effectiveness of his duo.
A cohesion which allows greater aggressiveness, because the fear of causing a breach in the defensive formation is reduced.
To be aggressive, you have to be dedicated to the cause. The same goes for placing himself in shooting lines, as he did, not without pain, against the Blue Jackets.
That too is part of Armia’s resurrection.
The Canadian flew Friday morning towards Calgary. He will face the Flames on Saturday, at 7 p.m., in his first game of a series of five away from the Bell Centre.