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Mark Carney leads the race for the Liberal leadership as the LPC gains ground against the Conservatives

According to data from Abacus Data, 33% of Canadians have a positive perception of Mark Carney, compared to 29% for Chrystia Freeland. This gap also widens among current supporters of the Canadian Liberal Party (PLC), with 64% having a favorable opinion of Carney, compared to 54% for Freeland.

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The race now seems to be between these two candidates. However, Carney, former governor of the Bank of Canada, also enjoys greater support among Cabinet members compared to the former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance.

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The PLC appears to be benefiting from greater support from the electorate since its leadership race to replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. The latter announced on January 6 that he would resign once his successor is elected on March 9.

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According to David Coletto, CEO of Abacus Data, the Canadians’ desire for government change has “softened” since Justin Trudeau’s resignation and the inauguration of U.S. President Donald Trump, who threatens Canada with 25% tariffs.

Fewer people seem to believe it is time to change government and that there are good alternatives to the ruling liberals: this figure has dropped from 56% of respondents in the days following Ms. Freeland’s abrupt resignation in December, to 52% in the following weeks, and then to 49% today.

This data comes from the latest Abacus Data survey, a Canadian market research and public opinion firm, conducted between January 22 and 26 with 2,205 Canadians, as reported by CBC News.

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If federal elections were held now, Pierre Poilievre’s Conservative Party would lead the Liberal Party by 21 points. This represents a decrease of three points for the Conservatives and an increase of two points for the Liberals compared to Abacus data from January 14.

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Hoping that Guhle’s situation does not become like Landeskog’s

Gabriel Landeskog has not played since June 26, 2022.

It has been almost three years, to put it another way.

The captain of the Avalanche had to undergo knee surgery after leading his team to the Stanley Cup, and we are still waiting for his return to play.

The knee required a cartilage transplant at the beginning of 2023… And where it gets concerning is when you think about the fact that he suffered a similar injury to that of Kaiden Guhle.

Landeskog – like Guhle – was cut by a skate, and his injury became complicated afterwards.

That said, we have to hope that Guhle’s situation does not become like Landeskog’s.

That would really be the end of it all… And it would slow down the rebuilding process for the Canadiens.

We know it could be a while before we see him fully recovered:

To lose Guhle for such a long time… It feels like I don’t even want to think about it.

It would force the Canadiens to find a replacement for him (internally or elsewhere) because obviously, the Canadiens will want to keep moving forward despite everything.

Internally, Jayden Struble and Arber Xhekaj can fill in… But only in the short term.

If Guhle is out for a while, none of those guys can be as effective as #21 defensively, and that hurts especially with the loss of the defenseman.

Unless we see Adam Engström explode in Laval by then, but we agree that we shouldn’t necessarily rely on that project.

There’s nothing ideal about Guhle’s injury, really. But oh well.

It’s unfortunate because things were going well before the Heineman incident regarding injuries with the Canadiens…

In brief

– To add insult to injury…

– Well done.

– That’s not ideal either.

– Oh boy.

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Kaiden Guhle’s injury: The Canadiens can no longer trade David Savard

No. No. No… Seriously?

That was my reaction in front of my television last night when I saw Kaiden Guhle retreating to the locker room, unable to put any weight on his leg.

Guhle was hurt quite seriously: earlier today, the Canadiens announced that the defenseman suffered a quadriceps muscle laceration. He went under the knife, and we don’t know when he will return to play.

Guhle’s absence will directly impact the team’s performance in the coming weeks.

We are talking about the general on the blue line in Montreal… And when a team loses its best defensive defender, it’s understood that it’s never a good sign for what’s to come.

Other guys will need to step up to make us forget his absence, and here we need to think about David Savard.

The veteran will have to play significant minutes until Guhle returns (if he is able to come back this season), and it makes us realize that right now… the Canadiens no longer have the luxury of considering trading Savard.

We need to forget that idea for now. Because there’s no chance the Canadiens will progress without Savard AND Guhle in the lineup…

(Credit: GettyImages)

This removes options from Kent Hughes’ table.

If the GM was perhaps interested in the idea of trading Savard for some reason, let’s just say his plans have just been shaken up a bit…

The timing of the injury is truly unfortunate because it was the worst moment for this to happen.

The Canadiens are two points away from a playoff spot and now they will have to navigate without Guhle for some time.

We know the importance of #21 in the lineup, after all.

That said, thank goodness the Canadiens traded Justin Barron to Nashville in exchange for Alexandre Carrier more than a month ago.

Without Guhle or Carrier in the lineup, it would have been more than difficult in the defensive zone until the lefty returned…

In Brief

– It’s going to be a special night.

– Enjoy the listen.

– Max Pacioretty is ready to return to play.

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Martin Leclerc brings to the forefront the topic of cannabis use in the NHL

It’s well known: some professional athletes consume cannabis.

I’m thinking of Kevin Durant or Michael Phelps, for example, who have never hidden this fact.

In fact, Durant – who has been playing in the NBA since 2007 – stated in an interview with David Letterman in 2022 that he consumes it regularly.

Martin Leclerc talked about this topic this morning on the airwaves of BPM Sports… But referencing the National Hockey League.

He reminded that currently, the trend among players is no longer to go out to bars: the guys prefer to stay at home to consume cannabis and mind their own business.

Players are going less and less to bars to socialize with teammates to drink alcohol. Instead, they spend much more time in their rooms playing video games and instead of consuming alcohol, they prefer to consume cannabis. – Martin Leclerc

This might come as a surprise to some, but we are talking about a trend that is not only related to hockey.

In fact, Arnaud Gascon-Nadon discussed it during his appearance on the Stanley25 podcast: cannabis can be found in hockey, football, basketball, name it…

It’s more popular than we think:

Athletes consume cannabis for various reasons.

Many of them stand behind the fact that it can help with muscle/mental relaxation, and for others, it helps with stress or anxiety.

In the football world, some guys even smoke beforehand so that the pain of contact is less intense during games!

That said, it would still be interesting to see what percentage of players use it in Montreal and across the NHL.

Arnaud Gascon-Nadon mentioned that about 80% of the locker room in the CFL (and even in the NFL) consume cannabis for X reasons before and after games… Is the percentage as high in the National League?

In brief

– That would be amazing!

– To be continued.

– Cha-ching!

– A few news in the MLB:

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Make thousands of dollars with old vests from Jonathan Drouin

I apologize – as a podcaster behind the Stanley25 podcast – for not being a bit more like David Reinbacher.

Like our first-round pick in 2023, Jean Trudel and I have the unfortunate habit of disappearing for several weeks (or even months) between our happy and active segments.

Let’s say that doing seasons of 10 episodes doesn’t appeal to everyone who listens/watches… and it doesn’t please our quieter third partner, Serge Fortin.

Why the comparison with David Reinbacher? Because he is on the way to returning to play sooner than expected, while JT and I have kept you waiting a week or two longer than anticipated.

A well-filled first episode
Yesterday afternoon, after attending the CF Montreal training session at the Marie-Victorin Sports Complex on my part, we finally recorded the first episode of our third season.

We made it available to Patreon subscribers around dinner time and it has just been posted online on the YouTube page of 9millions. Here it is now on DLC:

We talked about Mikko Rantanen, Cole Caufield’s #22 jerseys, the visit of the Sens to Quebec, the movement of boycott from USA in the Quebec media, Juraj Slafkovsky, Kent Hughes who is not panicking, Jakub Dobes, the accident of Emil Heineman, disappointing ratings on Amazon (NHL), a minor hockey coach who adds assists to his son, a mega big sports star, and several other interesting topics.

Among these other interesting topics, there is an anecdote about Patrik Laine’s jerseys shared by Jean.

On August 19, the Canadiens acquired the services of Patrik Laine (along with a second-round pick, in exchange for Jordan Harris).

Many fans tried to get their hands on CH jerseys with Laine’s name and number on the back, but it always takes a little time to prepare and then sell such specific items.

However, luck smiled upon Peter Alper, owner of the company Hockey Jerseyz, which specializes in selling official jerseys, old or new.

The day before the trade that brought Laine to Montreal, Alper saw a batch of Jonathan Drouin jerseys (#92) being put up for sale for official distributors. He bought several at $85 thinking he would eventually sell them over time. Drouin is still a talented Quebecer who played for the Montreal Canadiens…

But fate was on his side: the next day, Laine – who wears #92 – was arriving in Montreal.

Alper was thus one of the first to be able to sell official Laine jerseys…

And he probably made a big sum. Jerseys bought for $85 that you only have to change the name on top, on the back, and then sell for $300, make for a hell of a profit!

Especially when you know how to promote your jerseys on social media!

Since we’re talking about official jerseys, many retailers had difficulty obtaining their Cole Caufield jerseys with the #13 at the start of the season. Johnny Gaudreau passed away on August 29, and Caufield decided on September 3 that he would change his number to honor the memory of his friend.

Generally, a player who decides to change their number this late has to bear the costs this incurs for the NHL and its partners. And we’re talking about several hundred thousand dollars in the case of a popular guy like Caufield.

However, here, it’s very likely that the NHL charged nothing to the Canadiens forward.

Nonetheless, in the end, many retailers and sellers didn’t have jerseys to meet the (strong) demand.

I imagine they also arranged something with them on the NHL side…

It should be noted that there are a few spicy excerpts in this week’s podcast, but that you will have to watch the episode to hear them. Taken out of context, they could have stirred up controversy. That’s why I preferred to leave them in their context and not use them to attract readers. I wouldn’t want Mario in Trois-Pistoles to accuse me of clickbait.

But still, I could have titled it: Disaster for Monday hockey on Amazon; will the NHL be rejected by Jeff Bezos?

Happy listening. Or happy viewing!

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The CH was offered a second-round pick for Jake Evans in the last draft

With the season he is having, it is logical to think that Jake Evans has a good value on the market.

We are talking about a useful player because he is ultra-reliable on the ice and excels on the penalty kill.

He is not the one who wins games by himself… But he is certainly capable of contributing to the success of an NHL team.

Evans is likely to become an interesting target for Stanley Cup-contending teams, but interest in his services is not new.

In fact, what Frank Seravalli reports in a recent article is that the Canadiens were offered a second-round pick for Evans at the last draft.

The informant “believes” that the Capitals were the ones who called:

I believe the Caps are the team that tried to acquire Evans last summer during the draft in exchange for a second-round pick. – Frank Seravalli

If Evans was worth a second-round pick last summer in the eyes of the Capitals… What is his value today?

In his article, Seravalli mentions the names of five teams that could be in the race to acquire Evans by March 7.

He talks about the Capitals, Leafs, Flames, Devils, and Blue Jackets.

Interesting…

However, it should be noted that Evans could sign an extension with the Canadiens.

The CH likes him a lot and we know that the player himself wants to stay in town.

But we also know that Kent Hughes might be interested in the idea of sending him elsewhere to get good assets in return if he feels that contract discussions are not progressing to his liking.

There is still a possibility of seeing Evans leave for free in a few months, and it is certain that the organization does not want that.

After all, if he leaves, the CH will want to get something in return…

In Brief

– Note:

– I love the style!

– Yeah. Me too…

– It’s falling like flies.

– Surprising!

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Kaiden Guhle: The Canadiens announce that he will be sidelined for an indefinite period

There you go.

The news is finally out: The Canadiens have announced that Kaiden Guhle will be absent for an indefinite period.

The defenseman suffered a laceration to the quadriceps muscle and had to undergo surgery.

Clearly, this is a blow to the Canadiens.

It is unknown when Guhle will be able to return to play because the extent of the cut is not known.

After all, if there was surgery, it must have been significant. So, one can think he could be out for quite some time…

The problem is that the muscle needs time to fully heal.

After that, he will need to rebuild strength and regain mobility in the muscle AND time will be needed for the defenseman to get back into game shape…

It’s more complicated to come back from a lower body injury because if both legs are not functional, it affects cardio…

That said, can we think that his season is over? Hmm…

Ultimately, credit should be given to Tony Marinaro.

The radio host mentioned it this morning on BPM Sports and he stated that Guhle had sustained a cut.

Hats off, Tony!

In all this, it is still peculiar to see such an injury because players are well equipped.

Some of them wear anti-cut suits and special equipment to avoid cuts, and one has to wonder if Guhle just had a stroke of bad luck as well.

Extension

Let’s remember that the Canadiens recalled Jayden Struble to replace Guhle in the lineup and we should expect to see another recall tomorrow.

The Canadiens will embark on their Western trip on Friday and the team will want seven healthy defensemen in case one gets injured.

We will see who the lucky one will be…

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Patrik Laine at 5 c. 5: Martin St-Louis lost some patience during his press conference

After today’s practice, Martin St-Louis was questioned about Patrik Laine’s contribution at five-on-five.

The head coach – who wants to see more from his player – mentioned that Laine needs to continue working in order to improve and help the team collectively at that level.

A similar question came up at the end of his press conference… And he responded a bit awkwardly because he seemed tired of answering the question.

The coach said that he had already answered the question and that his answer would not change.

He then left his press conference… Before stating that Jakub Dobes will be in net tomorrow night against the Wild.

Again, his answer was quite short.

Ultimately, this isn’t the first time we’ve seen Martin St-Louis behave this way in a press conference. He got angry after a question about Cayden Primeau just before Christmas, he has previously challenged a journalist about Rafaël Harvey-Pinard…

This often happens when the team is struggling on the ice. And the three recent consecutive losses likely play a role in all of this.

It’s normal to see emotions come out sometimes.

But while we’re talking about Laine’s five-on-five performance, let’s discuss it.

It makes sense to believe that St-Louis isn’t satisfied because, at five-on-five, Laine isn’t always visible on the ice.

At 6’4, we should be seeing him a bit more. Laine needs to help the second line be more dangerous on the ice, and for a few games now, that hasn’t been the case.

Add to this the fact that the forward hasn’t scored in his last four games and has only four goals in his last 13 games.

He also has just one even-strength goal since the start of the season. That’s not enough… Especially for a guy who makes $8.7 million a season!

(Credit: ESPN)

We expected him to slow down after a hot start to the season… But at some point, he needs to be able to contribute in other ways as well.

And it’s clear that this bothers Martin St-Louis a bit.

In quick succession

– An excellent choice.

– Good point.

– Drew Doughty is ready to make his return.

– Good reading.

– Oh!

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Kaiden Guhle: an update will take place today

Since this morning, there’s been speculation about when the Canadiens will provide an update on Kaiden Guhle.

After all, there are questions regarding whether he has a long-term injury or if he will return to play soon. There’s also curiosity about whether he is truly injured, as suggested by Tony Marinaro this morning.

The answer will be revealed later today.

The Canadiens indicated that there will be a health update regarding the defenseman a little later today. One can assume that the team still has tests to conduct/analyze.

So, for now, we can only wait.

If Guhle were to be sidelined for an extended period, it would hurt the Canadiens. After all, without him, it will be difficult to maintain a stable defense, given that he formed a solid pair with Alexandre Carrier during the team’s good stretch.

But we will see what the Habs have to say.

Let’s remember that Jayden Struble was recalled by the Canadiens this morning. We can therefore assume that he will play in tomorrow’s game and that Guhle, at the very least, will have to sit out tomorrow night.

And if Guhle misses the trip to California, it’s likely that Logan Mailloux (or another guy from Laval) will come in as reinforcement.

In brief

– My colleagues are on the ground this morning.

– Only fourth?

– What do you think?

– Mathieu Perreault visited the Jets’ environment.

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Michael Andlauer’s suggestion to play games in Quebec: Bill Daly can’t believe it

Several days ago, Michael Andlauer announced that his Ottawa Senators would be playing preseason games at the Videotron Centre in Quebec City. This will happen in a few months.

But the Sens’ owner – and former shareholder in the Canadiens – did not stop there.

In addition to supporting the return of the Nordiques to Quebec, he said loudly and clearly that he would like to see the Senators play regular season games, in the future, at the Videotron Centre.

But don’t think he said this with the league’s approval, which seems to always tread carefully when it comes to discussing the return of hockey to Quebec.

Bill Daly, Gary Bettman’s right-hand man, was very surprised by Andlauer’s comments about his desire to play regular season games at the Videotron Centre.

Just how surprised?

So much so that when he was contacted by Jimmy Murphy (RG Media) to talk about the subject, he did not know exactly what the Senators’ controlling owner had said regarding his desire to play real games in Nordiques territory.

He said what? – Bill Daly

It was after being brought up to speed on the matter that Daly recalled he had never really heard about this… without, however, closing the door on the idea of seeing hockey played at the Videotron Centre.

Note: he did not open the door. He just made sure not to close it for no reason. But don’t hold your breath on that.

Because the NHL does not want to bring NHL hockey back to Quebec (that’s always been obvious for those who can read between the lines) and because the Sens have clearly not spoken to the NHL about the idea of playing real games in Quebec, I do not expect it to happen.

Unless the NHL is in trouble and needs Quebec someday.

In Brief

– Logical.

– I like this.

– Nico Hischier: his absence hurts.

– Auston Matthews was supposed to play in the Four Nations.

– Drew Doughty back tonight?