Stu's Slapshots: Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki does TV advert — in French

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With NHL video games on TV being taken over by fixed adverts for on-line playing websites, it’s refreshing to see Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki doing an advert for a gentle drink.

It’s much more refreshing that he’s doing it in French, together with teammate David Savard.

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Within the advert for Pepsi Zero Sugar, Suzuki and Savard are sitting within the locker room and the captain has headphones round his neck. Savard asks what Suzuki is listening to and he says: “Du nation rock.”

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When Savard responds that music doesn’t exist, Suzuki says: “Ben oui, ça existe! Écoute ça!” whereas handing over the headphones.

Savard takes a cross on the music and as a substitute they every open a can of the gentle drink and begin consuming.

“Ça c’est bon,” Savard says.

“Oui, c’est très bon!” Suzuki responds.

The advert jogs my memory of 1 former Expos catcher and future Corridor of Famer Gary Carter did together with his younger daughter Christy for 7UP through the Nineteen Seventies in English and French. On the finish of the French advert, Carter stated: “J’aime le 7UP.” Even when it was the one French the American baseball participant knew, it was a superb advertising transfer and a sensible PR transfer by Carter, connecting him with French-speaking Quebecers.

The identical factor applies now to Suzuki.

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“It was a number of enjoyable,” Savard stated after apply Friday in Brossard after I requested him about doing the TV business with Suzuki. “We had a number of laughs. He was engaged on his French, so it’s good. We have been serving to him out with pronunciation and stuff, attempting to make it as good as potential for the business. It was a great time.”

Savard is considered one of solely 4 Quebecers on the Canadiens’ roster, together with Samuel Montembeault, Rafaël Harvey-Pinard and Mike Matheson, who’re all bilingual.

“Being in downtown Montreal you will get round fairly simply (solely in English), however anyplace else (within the province) is French,” Savard stated. “I feel it’s vital for (different gamers) to only study the fundamentals. It’s positively laborious and it’s not simple to do, but it surely’s enjoyable for them to only strive a little bit bit. Typically they’re shy a little bit bit to speak to different individuals in French, however within the room we type of joke round and make them study a number of phrases right here and there, so it’s good.”

What number of targets for Cole?

Cole Caufield scored twice for the Canadiens of their season-opening 6-5 shootout loss to the Maple Leafs Wednesday evening in Toronto, however solely considered one of them counted. His first aim didn’t depend after the Leafs referred to as for a video overview that confirmed the play was offside by a hair.

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Caufield scored 26 targets in 46 video games final season and was on tempo to complete with 46 earlier than struggling a season-ending shoulder damage that required surgical procedure.

If the 5-foot-8, 175-pound Caufield can keep wholesome this season he may turn out to be the Canadiens’ first 40-goal scorer since Vincent Damphousse scored 40 in 1993-94 — eight years earlier than Caufield was born. The Canadiens haven’t have a 50-goal scorer since Stéphane Richer scored 51 in 1989-90 — when Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis was a 14-year-old taking part in minor hockey in Laval.

Caufield has scored 49 targets in 84 video games since St. Louis took over as head coach. St. Louis was requested earlier than the season opener about the potential of Caufield scoring 50 targets this season.

“Is it potential? Sure,” St. Louis stated. “However it’s not one thing that we’re specializing in. If Cole finally ends up scoring 50 I’m not going to be as impressed with the 50 targets that he scores, however how is he taking part in the sport and the way is he impacting the sport on each side of the puck. I positively assume that it’s a risk, however to me that’s simply specializing in the consequence. Our staff, we type of deal with the method and that stuff simply occurs as a aspect impact.”

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On this week’s episode of the HI/O Present we mentioned what number of targets Caufield and a few of his teammates would possibly end the season with. Test it out beneath and see should you agree.

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Matheson earns Béliveau Trophy

The Canadiens introduced Friday that Matheson is that this season’s recipient of the Jean Béliveau Trophy, which works to the participant who finest exemplifies management qualities in the neighborhood. The trophy comes with a $25,000 donation from the Montreal Canadiens Youngsters’s Basis to the charity of the participant’s selection.

Matheson, who grew up in Pointe-Claire on Montreal’s West Island, has embraced all the pieces about being a Canadien — each on and off the ice — since being acquired from the Pittsburgh Penguins final summer season. He has turn out to be an envoy for the Champions for Life Basis that empowers youngsters to maneuver properly and construct the abilities, confidence and motivation to be energetic for a lifetime. Matheson has visited faculties within the Montreal space, assembly college students from Grades 1 to six to learn interactive tales that permit them to breed the abilities illustrated in them.

Matheson and his spouse, Emily, have one little one — a son named Hudson, who turned 2 in June.

Bravo, Mike!

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Bear in mind me, coach?

At 33, goalie Jake Allen is the oldest participant on the Canadiens’ roster, adopted by Savard, 32, and forwards Brendan Gallagher and Tanner Pearson, who’re each 31.

They’ve all been across the NHL lengthy sufficient to have performed towards St. Louis, whose Corridor of Fame profession ended after the 2014-15 season with the New York Rangers when he posted 21-31-52 totals in 74 video games as a 39-year-old.

“I did play towards Marty and I have a look at that entire teaching workers (together with Alex Burrows, Trevor Letowski and Stéphane Robidas) I feel I performed towards all of them,” stated Pearson, who the Canadiens acquired final month in a commerce with the Vancouver Canucks. “It’s positively bizarre. However he’s positively one of many smartest guys that I’ve had coach me.

“I talked with J.T. Miller, who performed with him in New York, and we have been speaking about Marty a bit,” Pearson added. “It’s loopy how educated he’s in regards to the sport and the way in which he thinks it it’s fairly cool to study. I haven’t had a coach like that since Dale Hawerchuk in junior (with the OHL’s Barrie Colts). These high-end stage gamers, they assume the sport the identical manner. Typically they’re explaining one thing to you that’s common for them, however they obtained to further clarify it to you. The way in which they assume it’s fairly cool.”

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Reader query No. 1.

Marc Blanchard (@MarcB_86) despatched me this query on Twitter for St. Louis: “Does Marty have a tough time going out in public in MTL? Or do individuals usually depart him alone.”

I requested St. Louis the query after apply Friday.

“I perceive what Montreal brings as a coach of the Montreal Canadiens, as an ex-player,” St. Louis stated. “It doesn’t change a lot for me as a result of I’m not the man that’s going to take a seat house and do nothing as a result of I don’t wish to work together with anyone that’s going to wish to speak to me. Truthfully, I’m doing the identical factor and I take pleasure in that. If I can convey any individual a smile to take an image, how many individuals are you able to make their day that day? It’s a possibility for me, so I don’t sit house and do nothing.”

Pleasure vs. pleasure

Juraj Slafkovsky appeared like he was having a number of enjoyable through the Canadiens’ season opener.

The 19-year-old had an enormous smile on his face when he obtained again to the bench after making a ravishing cross to Alex Newhook for his first of two targets that gave the Canadiens a 2-0 lead 1:10 into the second interval.

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That may have additionally put a smile on St. Louis’s face.

“I would love him to not put a lot strain on himself,” St. Louis stated in regards to the No. 1 general choose finally 12 months’s NHL Draft earlier than the Canadiens’ last pre-season sport final Saturday in Ottawa. “To me it’s strain vs. pleasure. He’s obtained to have enjoyable. There’s obtained to be a objective in every day, however he’s obtained to have enjoyable as a result of should you don’t have enjoyable you cease getting higher. In order coaches we obtained to watch out in understanding that strain vs. pleasure. We obtained to watch out in not killing his ardour, speeding him as a result of we wish him to be good now and that’s not going to occur.”

Slafkovsky completed the season with the one help and a plus-2 differential whereas logging 15:27 of ice time and stated it was in all probability his finest sport within the NHL.

“I felt actually good and performed quite a bit,” Slafkovsky stated Thursday. “I had the puck quite a bit.”

As for his relationship with St. Louis, Slafkovsky stated: “We’ve had a number of conferences and we’re speaking quite a bit. We’ve got a great relationship. It’s solely useful when you could have a great relationship along with your coach. … We’ve sat down a number of occasions and he confirmed me some (video) clips. We simply went by some clips, he instructed me some stuff. I used to be simply attempting to make use of that on the ice to my benefit.

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“It’s actually useful on the finish of the day to have a man like Marty, who performed so a few years within the league and understands the sport very well to provide you some — not recommendation — however attempting that will help you.”

Reader query No. 2

Nathan Corridor (@cobourg1) requested me this query on Twitter: “What sort of season will Juraj Slafkovsky have?”

On this week’s HI/O Present, I predicted Slafkovsky will rating 12 targets after getting 4 targets in 39 video games final season as an 18-year-old rookie.

St. Louis is actually giving Slafkovsky each alternative to attain greater than 12 targets to start out the season, taking part in him on the second line with Dach and Newhook and in addition placing him on the second power-play unit.

Earlier than taking Slafkovsky with the No. 1 general choose finally 12 months’s NHL Draft, basic supervisor Kent Hughes stated he needed the participant who could be the perfect sooner or later, not essentially proper now. The Canadiens believed that participant was Slafkovsky and they’re being affected person together with his growth.

At this level in his profession growth, Slafkovsky jogs my memory of Joe Thornton, who was the No. 1 general choose by the Boston Bruins on the 1997 NHL Draft. As an enormous 18-year-old rookie, Thornton posted 3-4-7 totals in 55 video games. In his second season with the Bruins, Thornton had 16-25-41 totals in 81 video games.

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Sixteen targets for Slafkovsky this season could be an enormous success in my view.

Teammates recognize Xhekaj

After watching Arber Xhekaj manhandle the Maple Leafs’ Ryan Reaves and push him into the again of the online after which take him to the ice whereas throwing a right-hand punch throughout their first-period battle Wednesday evening, I used to be reminded of a scene outdoors the Canadiens’ locker room following a highway sport final season.

After the sport, Xhekaj was doing a number of pushups with a 50-pound weight on his again within the makeshift health club.

The 6-foot-4, 240-pound defenceman is remarkably robust and he confirmed that towards the 6-foot-2, 226-pound Reaves in his first battle since struggling a shoulder damage that required season-ending surgical procedure in a battle towards the Edmonton Oilers’ Vincent Desharnais final February.

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Xhekaj sits beside fellow defenceman Johnathan Kovacevic within the locker room on the CN Sports activities Advanced in Brossard they usually share a robust bond, each having dad and mom who immigrated to Canada from Europe on the lookout for a greater life and settled in Hamilton, Ont. Xhekaj’s father, additionally Arber (however often called Jack), left Albania and his mom, Simona, fled the Czech Republic. Kovacevic’s father, Novica, and mom, Angie, left Yugoslavia they usually ultimately met in Hamilton, similar to Xhekaj’s dad and mom did.

“The followers, everybody on the staff loves what he does,” Kovacevic stated Thursday about Xhekaj. “However I perceive that he’s obtained a tough job to do, too. It’s not simple doing what he does. That’s why everybody within the room, we now have a number of respect for him. In a manner, he enjoys doing that, too. He enjoys the strain and he makes essentially the most of it.”

Xhekaj dropped the gloves with Reaves after the brand new Maple Leafs’ tough-guy hit defencemen Kaiden Guhle laborious from behind into the boards.

“For us, he was doing it to stay up for Guhls,” Kovacevic stated. “I really feel like he type of obtained hit from behind there, Arber steps in. Form of reveals himself, reveals the league that the shoulder’s feeling nice. He’s somebody that we like to have on our aspect. He’s a type of man that he doesn’t need anybody messing together with his guys. We’re a household in right here and he doesn’t need anybody messing together with his household and that’s what you noticed yesterday.”

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Whereas preventing is declining within the NHL, Kovacevic doesn’t assume will probably be ever be eradicated from such a bodily sport the place issues can occur so rapidly.

“As people we nearly have in us to guard one another,” Kovacevic stated. “We’re a household and also you’ve obtained that emotional swap, I suppose, if you really feel like somebody’s messing with your personal.”

Xhekaj arrived in type at Toronto’s Scotiabank Enviornment for Wednesday’s sport wearing a bleu-blanc-rouge go well with.

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Tinordi finds house in Chicago

Connor Bedard was a month shy of his fifth birthday when the Canadiens chosen Jarred Tinordi within the first spherical (twenty second general) of the 2010 NHL Draft.

Now they’re teammates with the Chicago Blackhawks and they’ll face the Canadiens Saturday evening on the Bell Centre.

At age 31, Tinordi is writing fairly a comeback story.

The 6-foot-6, 229-pound defenceman performed solely 46 video games over 4 seasons with the Canadiens earlier than getting traded to the Arizona Coyotes on Jan. 15, 2016 (together with Stefan Fournier) in alternate for John Scott and Victor Bartley.

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Tinordi solely performed seven video games with the Coyotes after which spent 4 seasons within the AHL earlier than returning to the NHL through the 2019-20 season to play 28 video games with the Nashville Predators.

Tinordi performed seven video games with Nashville in 2020-21 earlier than being claimed off waivers by Boston and taking part in 14 video games for the Bruins. He signed as a free agent with the New York Rangers through the summer season of 2021, however solely performed seven video games with them in 2021-22 and ended up again within the AHL with the Hartford Wolf Pack. Chicago claimed Tinordi off waivers in October final 12 months and he performed 44 video games with the Blackhawks, posting 2-6-8 totals.

Tinordi averaged 14:09 of ice time within the Blackhawks’ first two video games this season — a 4-2 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins and a 3-1 loss to the Boston Bruins.

“I do know the place that I’m in,” Tinordi instructed reporters in Chicago throughout coaching camp. “My profession’s type of been up and down my entire profession. I used to be a waiver pickup final 12 months and I used to be preventing to be an on a regular basis participant, I used to be preventing to be within the lineup each evening. I feel for me that drive type of by no means goes away. I feel I’ve been preventing for each spot that I’ve had in my entire profession. It’s enjoyable to see the younger guys developing and also you wish to assist them as a lot as potential, but it surely’s additionally I wish to play and that is my livelihood, too.”

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Tinordi has a one-year, US$1.25-million contract.

Prospects watch

Defenceman Lane Hutson, chosen by the Canadiens within the second spherical (62nd general) of the 2022 NHL Draft, scored the successful aim in extra time for Boston College in a season-opening 3-2 win over Bentley final Saturday and was named the Hockey East Participant of the Week.

As a freshman final season, the 5-foot-10, 162-pound Hutson (what he’s now listed at on the Boston College web site) had 15-33-48 totals in 39 video games and had a plus-25 differential whereas changing into the primary defenceman in Hockey East historical past to win the league scoring title. Boston College gained the league championship with Hutson scoring two targets — together with the winner in extra time — in a 3-2 victory over Merrimack within the championship sport.

When requested in regards to the hype surrounding him on the finish of the Canadiens’ growth camp in July, the 19-year-old Hutson stated: “I simply strive to not look an excessive amount of into it. I simply go on the market and have enjoyable day-after-day. It’s a enjoyable sport to play. I simply attempt to have enjoyable.”

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Jacob Fowler, chosen by the Canadiens within the third spherical (69th general) of this 12 months’s NHL Draft, was named the Hockey East Goalie of the Week after stopping 29 of the 30 pictures he confronted to earn a win in his Boston School debut final Saturday, beating Quinnipiac 2-1 in extra time

Birthday boys

Glad birthday to former Philadelphia Flyers enforcer Dave “The Hammer” Schultz, who turns 74 on Saturday. Schultz nonetheless holds the NHL document for many penalty minutes in a season with 472 through the 1974-75 season when the “Broad Avenue Bullies” gained their first of two straight Stanley Cups.

Willie O’Ree, who turned the primary Black participant within the NHL when he performed for the Boston Bruins in a 3-0 victory over the Canadiens on the Discussion board on Jan. 18 1958, turns 88 on Sunday.

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