St-Louis' Coaching Career Teeters On the Edge - Can He Adapt to Save His Job?

Montreal Canadiens' head coach Martin St-Louis is undeniably under pressure to deliver results. As the Habs continue to navigate their rebuild, St-Louis' coaching methods and decisions are facing increasing scrutiny. Following a brief yet impressive stint as the team's bench boss, some fans are starting to question whether St-Louis has the chops to take the Habs to the next level.

It's easy to forget that St-Louis, a former NHL player himself, found his way into the Canadiens' coaching gig without prior experience behind an NHL bench. What he lacked in experience, however, was made up for with a cerebral approach and his ability to connect with players on a personal level. Fans of the team heaped praise upon St-Louis early on for breathing fresh air into the team's stale atmosphere, injecting a sense of positivity that hadn't been felt in a long time.

But what happens when positivity isn't enough and the results start to dwindle? The young Habs coach is facing a scenario many of his contemporaries have navigated with mixed results - adapting his coaching philosophy to suit the needs of the team.

Chief among St-Louis' areas for improvement is learning to delegate better, general manager Kent Hughes pointed out in a recent interview. It's no secret that the relationship between St-Louis and Hughes is built on a foundation of trust and mutual respect, but with growing pressure to make the Habs a competitive force in the league once more, such evaluations can hardly be seen as criticism.

Delegating responsibilities effectively allows coaches to ensure all aspects of the team's operation are working in harmony, though it can be a tough transition for some. Every coach has their unique style, and often these leaders can get mired in every detail, particularly in high-stakes situations like the NHL.

St-Louis has a tendency to be 'hands-on' and that can be a good thing in terms of creating lasting connections with his players and generating a sense of togetherness that becomes hard to replicate with other teams. But the knock-on effect of such a tack is that some responsibilities might fall by the wayside as a result, or that, because one person assumes such an enormous workload, the rest of the support staff can become disconnected.

To compound this, the Habs have the youngest core in the league. While this might appear as an asset going forward - there's less expectation to win immediately, so there's more wiggle room to shape players however the organization sees fit - it can create tension for St-Louis. Not only is he handling all on-ice affairs, but off-ice considerations such as managing media and fans' expectations weigh heavier because of his increased role in galvanising the community, ever since taking up the spot.

Delivering results for the Habs, particularly during the difficult run of form that St-Louis' side has endured, might become more manageable if the young Canadiens coach learns how best to trust his staff and offload duties where he can. GM Kent Hughes echoes the same sentiment. It boils down to effective communication and striking a balance between an individual's need for control and knowledge of their boundaries and strengths.

Make no mistake, this evaluation comes from a place of encouragement. There is ample talent available within the Canadiens to jettison the rebuilding phase and enter the thick of league contention sooner rather than later. While coach Martin St-Louis has many qualities contributing to the Habs' modern era, incorporating one crucial change into his toolkit can prove the defining factor between stagnation and the resounding triumph Canadiens fans yearn for.