After a tumultuous run in Columbus, Patrik Laine requested a trade from the Blue Jackets in the summer after his release from the NHLPA's Player Assistance Program, and he was swiftly granted it.
He then landed in Montreal before suffering an injury in the pre-season, but since his return he's been red-hot, posting 8 goals and 9 points in 9 games thus far as he has given this team a massive spark.
Now, he faces the Blue Jackets for the first time since leaving in the off-season, and given the hard feelings that some fans had towards him after his departure, he was asked about them before the game.
As a professional athlete should, Laine revealed that he doesn't care about those fans that hate him and what happened during his time with the team, but for those that supported and continue to support him, he's very appreciative of them.
When asked earlier in the day about why he requested a trade, Laine kept it simple, but it's safe to say that many fans and people within the organization won't be too happy with what he said.
Unfortunately for Laine, the Canadiens are in the midst of a rebuild of their own, but with he, Cole Caufield, Nick Suzuki and Lane Hutson among others leading the way, it's safe to say that they're a much more talented team, and one that's ready to start taking major leaps forward.
G | A | PTS | ||
Mark Scheifele | 3 | 1 | 4 | |
Kyle Connor | 2 | 2 | 4 | |
Sidney Crosby | 1 | 3 | 4 | |
Rasmus Dahlin | - | 4 | 4 | |
Dylan Holloway | 3 | - | 3 | |
Jack Hughes | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
Jirí Kulich | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
Jonathan Marchessault | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
Brad Marchand | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
Kirill Marchenko | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
Filip Forsberg | - | 3 | 3 | |
Sean Monahan | - | 3 | 3 | |
Gabriel Vilardi | - | 3 | 3 | |
Zachary Werenski | - | 3 | 3 | |
Michael Bunting | 2 | - | 2 | |
Elias Pettersson | 2 | - | 2 | |
John Tavares | 2 | - | 2 | |
Dmitry Voronkov | 2 | - | 2 | |
Charlie Coyle | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
Jake Evans | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
Complete stats |
STANDINGS 2024-2025 | ||||||
TOP 10 | GP | W | L | OL | PTS | |
Jets | 36 | 25 | 10 | 1 | 51 | |
Golden Knights | 34 | 23 | 8 | 3 | 49 | |
Devils | 37 | 23 | 11 | 3 | 49 | |
Capitals | 34 | 23 | 9 | 2 | 48 | |
Wild | 35 | 21 | 10 | 4 | 46 | |
Panthers | 36 | 22 | 12 | 2 | 46 | |
Oilers | 34 | 21 | 11 | 2 | 44 | |
Maple Leafs | 35 | 21 | 12 | 2 | 44 | |
Hurricanes | 34 | 21 | 12 | 1 | 43 | |
Kings | 34 | 19 | 10 | 5 | 43 | |
Conference | Cumulative |