You can add the name André Tourigny to the list of people who have loved Kaiden Guhle’s game since the start of the season.

In an interview with Jean-Charles Lajoie on Tuesday, whoever knew Guhle from Junior Team Canada gave a whole testimony in favor of his former protégé.

“In the next 15 years, no one in Montreal will have more ice age than Kaiden Guhle. He’s a physically strong guy who hits hard and skates like the wind. He makes the pass at the right place and at the right time. He’s the kind of guy that when you see changes you’re disappointed. You want it to be like Nintendo and stay on the ice all the time.”

If the Arizona Coyotes head coach wasn’t hiding his admiration for Guhle, he also wanted to call for calm on Juraj Slafkovsky.

“It’s the same case as with Guhle. Guhle, you’ve waited three years. Slafkovsky, you will see that in three years he will be good. Of course, if Guhle had played in the NHL three years ago, he wouldn’t be who he is today. It’s a process of learning your craft. It’s a different style than in Europe. It’s a lot to learn and live with the pressure of being the first choice in Montreal. He doesn’t need to win the Canadiens this year.”

A trial with the Coyotes

As for his team, Tourigny believes that the time for experimentation is over and the first results are beginning to appear. The Coyotes also caused an upset by beating the Maple Leafs on Monday in Toronto.

“We have a lot of young players and a lot of new players. We tried a few things during the camp. There are games we could have won and we didn’t win, and it snowed. Yesterday we found a way to win. You found a way to lose. It’s a step in the right direction.”

Even as the Coyotes rebuild, the Quebecers firmly believe they can never be a winning team if they don’t do things right.

“The important thing is to maintain a championship attitude. What we are doing today, we would also do if we had a club that strives for high honors. We really want to play properly, train, prepare and compete. We want to make good decisions with or without the puck. Our style of play shouldn’t differ from that of the big teams.

Watch the full interview in the video above.