Martin St. Louis Guides Canadiens to 2-1 Lead — Montreal Canadiens Live
montreal canadiens live starts with a 2-1 series lead for the Canadiens over the Buffalo Sabres, and Martin St. Louis has them one win ahead heading into Game 4 on Tuesday night in Montreal. The coach from nearby Laval has helped turn a rebuild into a playoff run that has taken hold in Quebec.
St. Louis in Montreal
St. Louis grew up 20 minutes from here, and all his idols were the Canadiens. He said he was able to stay up late in the playoffs and watch the whole game as a child, and that background has followed him into a job now played under the same roof where he once watched from afar.
The Canadiens hired him despite a coaching resume limited to Peewee hockey. He was an undrafted winger who became an NHL MVP, and that path has shaped the way he has handled players in this postseason. Montreal has not lost consecutive games this post-season, a stretch that has kept the series from swinging back to Buffalo after the opener.
Bell Centre Pressure
St. Louis has also made the Bell Centre part of the story, walking to the arena because he does not live far from it. He said, “You feel the support from all the fans out there. I don't live far, I walk here,” and added, “You just feel like we're all in this together with the fans. They're proud, they're happy, (you hear) a lot of ‘good luck’s,’ ‘great job.’ It's a lot of fun.”
That presence has been matched by his decisions on the ice. After Montreal lost the series opener to Buffalo, several players said he gave a pre-game speech before Game 2. Kirby Dach then had his opportunity after a Game 2 gaffe, and Brendan Gallagher was inserted in Game 5 of the opening round against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Canadiens Against Buffalo
Cole Caufield described his coach as “Pushing the right buttons at the right time,” and said, “He's more confident in our group, the way he handles himself, we're confident in what he's doing.” Dach was even more direct: “He's phenomenal,” he said, adding that St. Louis can connect with each player in the room and find a way to drag the best out of them.
The series now comes back to Montreal with the Canadiens leading 2-1, and Tuesday night’s Game 4 gives them a chance to widen that margin before Buffalo can reset the matchup. For a team as young as this one, the next step is still being taken in front of the same fans who are already treating the run like part of the city again.
