What is Martin St-Louis’ playing system in the defensive zone? Much has been written about the Montreal Canadiens’ deficiencies in defensive coverage, but few experts have attempted to define the famous system.

During the press conferences in St-Louis we learn to better understand this defense system. This is a hybrid system of man-to-man coverage and zone coverage.

This hybrid system would particularly contribute to the success of the Florida Panthers, who implement it wonderfully. At least that’s what Nick Suzuki explained in training on Friday.

But Suzuki also mentioned something interesting that wasn’t lost on TVA Sports reporter Anthony Martineau: The young players on the team are getting familiar with a system they’ve never seen before.

“It alarmed me,” our reporter said during his segment on the show JiC. I visited Logan Mailloux in the locker room and asked him if he had ever played in a hybrid system.

Mailloux’s answer was apparently quite eloquent: he had never seen this system. Neither in Laval nor in London.

“It’s not normal for a guy like Logan Mailloux and many others to arrive in the best league in the world and have to learn to play a defensive system they’ve never played against against the best,” noted Anthony Martineau. We wonder why things are going so wrong. CH is the second youngest team in the league and the majority of the boys have never played with this system.

“I think we’re starting to find some answers there.”

Watch Anthony Martineau’s full post at JiC in the video above.

In collaboration with our partners