Max Pacioretty says everyone in Montreal has a shelf life

While on the "Agent Provocateur" podcast with Allan Walsh and Adam Wylde, Vegas Golden Knights forward Max Pacioretty discussed his time in Montreal with the Canadiens, the team who drafted him back in 2007.

"Montreal is an amazing place, and I'm so proud of what I accomplished there, but I just feel like everybody has a shelf life there," Pacioretty said. "Everyone told me it - ex-players, current players, fans."

Pacioretty went on to add, "I was stubborn, I was hard-headed. (I thought), 'No, that won't happen to me. I'm gonna be here for the rest of my career, I love it here. I live in Westmount. I'm down in the city with the fans going out to dinner every night.' And even when I did get traded, I still thought I could be here forever and not have it affect me."

Hockey in Montreal is a religion, and when the team is bad, you hear about it, when the team is good, you hear about it. Pacioretty discussed how playing in Vegas is a lot different than in Montreal.

"There just seems to be so much less pressure, and whether you admit it or not, you just go about your everyday life in such an easier manner that it really (takes) so much less of a toll on you," he said. "Whether you're a leader or a young guy, there's no media here. Even if you don't read the media in Montreal, you know what's being said."

"I was so used to (coming) to the rink after a loss - two or three losses - and it's the end of the world. No one's talking to each other, and it's heavy. You go out to dinner and everyone's complaining about the team, and the traffic, and the weather. In Vegas, you can lose three in a row and everyone's still positive."

On the ice this season, Pacioretty has only appeared in four games due to a lower-body injury. In those four games, he's recorded five points (two goals, three assists), two penalty minutes, and is a plus-three.

Pacioretty reflects on stint in Montreal: 'Everybody has a shelf life there' https://t.co/LzL1XGE4IE pic.twitter.com/Q8pznnuMD5— theScore NHL (@theScoreNHL) December 1, 2021

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