The Canadian | Jeff Petry, the elephant in the room

There are those secrets so badly kept that they end up not being secrets at all.

Simon Olivier Lorange
The Press

The situation of Jeff Petry, at the Canadian, has gone far beyond the stage of rumor.

In an interview at The Press, at the end of January, Kent Hughes had openly stated that he was ready to trade the veteran, struggling with a difficult family situation. Invoking in particular the heaviness of the sanitary measures imposed in Quebec, his wife, American like him, left to live in Michigan with their three boys. We later learned that the couple was expecting a fourth child.

On the ice, the one who was once recognized for his elegance on skates did not seem – and still does not seem – on his plate. We suspect that it is not more festive at home, in a big empty house.

Hiring Martin St-Louis seemed to make him smile again. In a rare media appearance on February 28, Petry said he would like to “play a long time” for this new coach. Had his plans changed?

Obviously not. Thursday, a few hours after giving Ben Chiarot to the Florida Panthers, Kent Hughes explained that he was not actively trying to trade any of his players. With one exception: Jeff Petry. Again, his family background was mentioned.

The speech of the DG has not changed. We did not give ourselves the obligation to conclude a transaction at all costs. Offensively skilled right-handed defenders aren’t a common sight, and even if Petry is a big winner and clumsy, we won’t get rid of him without making a “bargain”. But we still try to accommodate it.

Delicate

We would certainly have loved to discuss the situation with the main actor of this soap opera, but he declined the request formulated by the journalists to meet him after practice on Friday. Once a key player spokesperson to the media, Petry is more self-effacing than ever this season.

This file, for his teammates, is the elephant in the room (or in the locker room), as we say in English. This obvious and known situation that no one addresses in order not to cause embarrassment.

Joel Edmundson, his partner for all of last season whom he has just found on the ice, said Friday that the number 26 had shown “no signs” of hassle about it. “He is happy to be part of the Canadiens and has been playing good hockey for two weeks,” said the Manibotain. He’s a guy everyone likes. I hope he stays. »

Nick Suzuki went a little further. “I know his family situation is not the best; we want him to be with his family, that’s the most important thing,” he said. Moreover, the center player persists: “Jeff likes to play here, he is part of the group. He still wants to help the team. »

Surprisingly, one of the members of the organization who has known the defender the shortest time had the most sincere and elaborate answer about him.

Martin St-Louis is particularly well placed to understand what he is going through. By agreeing to join the Habs, he himself had to move away from his wife and their three sons, who remained in the United States.

“I’m here, I’m having fun, it’s the fun, I have a challenge, but there is a price to pay. It’s not easy not being able to go see my children play,” St-Louis told The Press a few days after his hiring, in February.

Earlier this week, the coach lit up by highlighting the visit to Montreal of his wife and their youngest son, Mason.

Communication

Of course, that’s not the only thing Petry and St-Louis are talking about.

There is obviously “hockey and the team”, which must “continue to move forward”. “It’s a matter of balance, and we’re going to keep balancing that with Jeff. »

Communication, we understand, is at the heart of Martin St-Louis’ philosophy. More than once, he has already stressed how essential it is for him to know the “individuals”, the “personalities” who sit on his bench, in order to “maximize the potential of the players”.

It’s not an approach he himself experienced as a player – “when I retired in 2015, I can’t say there was a lot of communication”. However, in an increasingly young league, and all the more so with the collective awareness that is exerted on the subject of mental health, the unspoken and a cold employee-relationship are no longer in fashion. .

“That does not mean that we are not strict, but I think that there is a bigger human side in the development” of players, “said the coach again.

It is therefore with this in mind that he asks Jeff Petry, the human and the hockey player, to “meet him halfway”. A kind of tacit agreement between the two which, taking into account the context, does not exempt the defender from the imperatives of the team.

“I work one on one with the players, and Jeff is one of those guys. We hope things work out for him, one way or another, so that we continue to move forward as a team and that he continues to improve as a player,” concluded St-Louis.

As the trade deadline approaches, all the players repeat that they are focused on hockey and that trading is part of the life of a professional athlete. We suspect, however, that Jeff Petry will keep a close eye on his phone by Monday, 3 p.m.

In short

Price takes another step

Over the past few days, Carey Price has taken a new step in his rehabilitation by beginning specialized work with coach Éric Raymond. According to what the team suggests, this would be the last step to cross before he takes part in full training sessions, with the whole group. Having had knee surgery last July, Price has still not played this season; after two regressions in his return to play program, however, he is more advanced than ever before. Enough to prove his CEO right, who said on Thursday that he still hoped to see him play at least one game this season.

The occupied infirmary

No details were provided on their medical condition, but Artturi Lehkonen, Paul Byron, Nick Suzuki and Brendan Gallagher did not train on Friday as they were on “treatment day”. Gallagher seemed shaken by a contact with the boards Thursday night against the Dallas Stars. After missing part of the second period, he returned to play in the third period. Otherwise, Jonathan Drouin, injured in the wrist, participated in another full training, without constraint, but it is still the subject of a daily evaluation. He is not ready to play yet, the team said. David Savard (ankle), Andrew Hammond (lower body), Josh Anderson (lower body) and Kale Clague (undisclosed injury) all skated with an athletic therapist.

Perreault still in the dark

We still do not know the fate that awaits Mathieu Perreault. Ignored on waivers earlier this week, the Quebecer had yet to meet the team’s management on Friday. Three scenarios are emerging for him. A referral to the Laval Rocket, in the American League. An exchange to another team, which would also have the opportunity to demote him to his school club since he has just been subject to waivers; we could then keep him in reserve until the playoffs, then recall him to the NHL when the salary cap no longer exists. Or even a termination of his contract, although this option would make him a free agent, a rather unusual situation, therefore improbable, at this stage of the season. To be continued.