Major information emerges on Jonathan Drouin's trade to Montreal
Having played for the Montreal Canadiens for six seasons, Jonathan Drouin did not see his time in the metropolis unfold as he had wished. Indeed, his offensive production drastically dropped due to recurrent injuries.
Arriving as a savior when Marc Bergevin acquired him in exchange for Mikhail Sergachev, the Quebecois forward crumbled under the enormous pressure from the fans, who saw in Drouin the next star of the Montreal organization.
Despite his first two seasons where he was a key element for the Canadiens, numerous injuries significantly slowed him down. His performances on the ice subsequently deteriorated, which led the former third overall pick to suffer from anxiety, forcing him to distance himself from the team's environment on a few occasions.
However, according to information recently shared by Tony Marinaro on BPM Sports, we learned that Jonathan Drouin always wanted to play for the Montreal Canadiens, even when he was with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Aware of the pressure a Quebecer faces playing for the CH, the forward was convinced he could adapt to a market as demanding as Montreal's.
Unfortunately, that's not what happened
Moreover, according to Tony Marinaro, it was very close people in the forward's entourage who confirmed this information. However, that's not all; it was these same people who reportedly hinted to Marc Bergevin that Drouin absolutely wanted to wear the Bleu-Blanc-Rouge uniform.
So, it was at that moment that the general manager of the Montreal Canadiens contacted his counterpart, John Cooper, to start the discussions that eventually led to the transaction involving the attacker from Sainte-Agathe.
«There are Quebecers who can handle the pressure and there are Quebecers who can't handle the pressure from Montreal.
Drouin, when he was traded to the Montreal Canadiens there [] I had members of his entourage, very close people to him, who had whispered to me that when he was with the Tampa Bay Lightning, Drouin really wanted to play for the Canadiens.
With Steve Yzerman, things weren't going well. With John Cooper, it wasn't going well. There were rumors about him, saying he's not easy to manage, not easy to coach, but I trusted these people because they knew him very well and they were telling me: ‘You'll see, he wants to come to Montreal and you know the pressure, he'll handle it, no problem'.
Finally, we saw when he came to the Canadiens and his wish was granted because these same people who had whispered that to me also whispered it to Marc Bergevin's ear, so, Marc Bergevin started negotiations with the Lightning. We saw that he collapsed.» - Tony Marinaro
Wow! That's a huge scoop!
It's really sad to see that a player from our own wanted to genuinely don the CH uniform, but his journey within the organization was fraught with obstacles due to the incredible pressure that exists in the Montreal market.
Fortunately, Jonathan Drouin seems to have finally found the joy of playing, having a thunderous season alongside his good friend Nathan MacKinnon with the Colorado Avalanche. Dangerously approaching the 50-point mark, with 14 goals and 32 assists, number 27 has managed to relaunch his career away from the Montreal spotlight.
For sure, we strongly hope he can continue to experience success and, who knows, maybe win a Stanley Cup!
| POLL |
2 AVRIL | 145 ANSWERS Major information emerges on Jonathan Drouin's trade to Montreal Do you think Jonathan Drouin will sign an extension with the Colorado Avalanche? |
| Yes | 119 | 82.1 % |
| No | 26 | 17.9 % |
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