For barely a few minutes, a dozen veterans had hated their lives, tortured on the ice by physical fitness tests. The Canadian’s training camp was well and truly underway. The news then fell, brutal: Joel Edmundson will be sidelined for an “indefinite” period due to a back injury.
Updated yesterday at 7:27 p.m.
The defender was injured earlier this week during a skating session after colliding with Nick Suzuki. The latter was left with a “lower body” injury which forced him to rest for two weeks. However, for Edmundson, no return date has yet been advanced.
It was the executive vice-president of hockey operations for the Canadiens, Jeff Gorton, who gave the details of this anecdote during a radio interview at the end of the day, several hours after the organization had contented itself with evoke a laconic injury to the “lower body”.
Reporters asked head coach Martin St-Louis if the back had been injured and if the injury was related to the similar injury that deprived Edmundson of two-thirds of the schedule last year. In both cases, St-Louis preferred not to come forward, for lack of sufficient “details”.
Obviously, his boss Jeff Gorton had these details, because he provided them all, on TSN 690, to host Mitch Melnick. The manager said he was not worried about Suzuki. As for Edmundson, he confirmed that the shock had awakened an “old injury”, adding however that he felt “better today than yesterday” and wished for a “short term” return from his skater.
If she were to lie down, her absence would have considerable impacts in two respects.
On the one hand, on a personal level. On the exact same date, last year, the Canadiens released the same news about the defender, with the difference that at the time, the nature of his injury had not been specified at all – between us, what do we learn from the “lower body”? In any case, a “day-to-day” reassessment later turned into a very long-term convalescence. He only played his first game of the season on March 12.
On the other hand, the impact on the collective level is undeniable. It was already certain that the CH defense would be inexperienced this season, with only four veterans in place who had played 245 games or more in the NHL. Looking back at the end of last season, general manager Kent Hughes knew that young defenders would have their chance in 2022-2023, but he had explicitly expressed the wish that they would not form half of the unit. However, the manager will have to come to terms with this if three full-time positions need to be filled.
In Edmundson’s absence, Michael Matheson becomes the only established NHL back available on the left flank. The door therefore opens wide for Kaiden Guhle, who has never played in the NHL, and for Jordan Harris, who has 10 games of experience.
PHOTO ROBERT SKINNER, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Michael Matheson
Older than them at 27, Corey Schueneman also sees his chances increase of starting the season in Montreal. We could also fall back on Madison Bowey, who was undoubtedly destined for the Laval Rocket, but whose experience of 158 games in the NHL could suddenly pay off.
Promotion
If Michael Matheson believed that his debut with the Canadian would take place in peace, he can immediately change his plans.
We joke, of course, because this Montrealer knows his new club well. Still, the Pittsburgh Penguins fourth defenseman in ice time over the past two seasons will see a lot more action than before. Martin St-Louis, moreover, has already announced that “a lot of minutes” await him.
In a press briefing, Matheson praised the “challenge” represented by this chance to play “a bigger role than in Pittsburgh”.
There are several players at this camp who are looking to get bigger roles: I am part of this group.
Michael Matheson
Even if he is the last to arrive, he wants to put his experience at the service of his young teammates. In the Midget AAA League and later in the college ranks, he captained his team, he recalled. “It’s important for me to speak with young people, to help them. »
Blank page
More than ever, in the absence of Edmundson, the defense of the Canadiens seems like a blank canvas. The two players with the most seniority on the team, David Savard and Chris Wideman, have only played one season in Montreal. Matheson has just arrived. Their future partners, as we have already mentioned, are barely beginning their professional careers – with the exception of Schueneman, who has only played 24 games in the NHL.
This squad is also led by Stéphane Robidas, who himself is taking his first steps in this capacity.
Even with guys who have been there for 10 years, with a new coach, it’s always different.
Michael Matheson
Matheson immediately warns observers: “It won’t be perfect all the time. »
As a group, “we’re young, we’ll be excited, we’ll work hard, but it won’t be perfect”.
“It will be important to help each other,” he said. It’s easy to be happy and excited when things are going well, but it’s when things are going badly that it matters most. »
Martin St-Louis therefore appeals to the “leadership” of all his players. “You don’t have to be a defender to help a young defender,” he summed up.
Even before his trainer spoke about it, Brendan Gallagher had made the same speech. He promises that he will not let go of his young comrades.
As a striker, I want to push these guys. I want to fight as much as possible against them. The start of the season will come quickly, and guys will have to stand out, show that they are ready to seize their chance. Camp is made for that. Internal competition pushes everyone to work tirelessly and be responsible.
Brendan Gallagher
He won’t take pity on anyone, he said. “It’s the NHL: if you’re there, we expect you to be able to do the job. We would not put these young people in this situation if we did not believe in them. So you have to push them again and again. »
Sooner or later, underlines the veteran, “they will have to play big minutes in the defensive zone against Sidney Crosby or Connor McDavid”. “When it happens, you have to be ready,” he repeated.
blood and water
PHOTO MARTIN CHAMBERLAND, THE PRESS
Thursday was dedicated to a series of speed and fitness tests.
Martin St-Louis had announced that he expected his players to display impeccable physical form from the start of training camp. He quickly pushed them to their limit. Thursday was dedicated to a series of speed and fitness tests. The flagship event placed the players in a chase situation, in a set-up reminiscent of short track speed skating. Chris Wideman has also admitted that he now has “a lot of respect” for the experts in this discipline. The defender was part of the first group to comply. By his side, Brendan Gallagher and Mike Hoffman, among others, seemed to hope that they would be finished off. “We were happy it was over,” sneered Gallagher. St-Louis said he was inspired by his ex-coach John Tortorella in developing this exercise. “It’s a mental test,” he added. The way we humans are programmed, when it hurts, our head tells us to stop. I like this test because it allows us to see how you are able to win the battle in your head. »