Yesterday, Maxime Comtois, a Quebec forward who is making a name for himself with the Anaheim Ducks, praised Christian Dvorak at length, indicating, among other things, how underrated he was. Like everyone who follows Dvorak closely, he believes he could explode offensively out of Arizona. This is still great news for the Monteral Canadiens fanatics.
After D-Vo, Comtois spoke out about this potential "gap" in Jesperi Kotkaniemi's development. We are aware that it could have gone better, and that KK and the Canadiens are both partly to blame. But, as Comtois wisely pointed out, the media and the fans are also to blame. Montreal's pressure should not be buried in the sand...
"In the case of Kotkaniemi, the journalists and the people, in my opinion, did not help. In Montreal, one mistake and it's the end of the world: they want to trade you or put you in the stands. Honestly, I don't know how he felt starting his career there. It's a lot of pressure." -Maxime Comtois
He also mentioned that KK didn't have what it took in order to be selected 3rd overall in his draft in 2018: "From my perspective, he wasn't supposed to come out third overall in 2018 and I think many were surprised by this selection. The expectations for him were huge from the get-go and he dragged that out afterwards. It's not an easy place for a young player to be."
Comtois also said that Nick Suzuki, the Montreal Canadiens' first center, was not spared during his little lethargy last season. He is quite right. In Quebec, we are often too severe towards our players. The proof is that Suzuki is an exceptional player and people still criticized him during a brief slump. Let's take a step back when we get too emotional, OK?
