the Canadiens announced<\/a> Fowler, defenceman Adam Engstr\u00f6m and forward Owen Beck had been called up from the Laval Rocket, who play at home Wednesday night against the Toronto Marlies.<\/p>\nWith the trade market frozen, Canadiens management had few options to address the situation other than what\u2019s in Laval. Calling up Fowler when the Canadiens are this leaky defensively seems like a bad idea. Goaltenders take time to be ready for the NHL because the NHL can be a cruel place for goaltenders. Their confidence can crumble extremely quickly, as this Canadiens season has clearly shown.<\/p>\n
But calling up Engstr\u00f6m and Beck as well is evidently a message: It\u2019s not only the goaltending that stinks right now.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously we know what to do, whether it\u2019s a lack of preparation or effort on our side, it\u2019s unacceptable. We\u2019ve got to be a lot better,\u201d Cole Caufield said. \u201cIt was pretty embarrassing tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n
The postgame call-ups overshadowed an important subplot for the Canadiens.<\/p>\n
Lightning coach Jon Cooper spoke to reporters 90 minutes before puck drop, knowing full well his role as Team Canada\u2019s Olympic coach would come up. He was stunned it took four minutes before he had to field a question about it.<\/p>\n
Cooper is not part of the Team Canada management team \u2014 his GM Julien BriseBois is \u2014 but there is no doubt Cooper influences who gets selected. He made a point of stating that the management team scouting these players live has a better perspective than he does of who is playing well and who isn\u2019t, but he still gets to see the same ones on a regular basis.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy best viewing of players is when I get to see them up close, in the game, and how they\u2019re impacting it,\u201d Cooper said. \u201cI will say this: I usually get phenomenal efforts from whatever Canadian is on the other team, so that\u2019s worked against me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Suzuki is Canadian. He was on the other team Tuesday. Cooper did not get a phenomenal effort from him, which was not Suzuki\u2019s fault. His team has a tendency to have these duds, particularly at home.<\/p>\n
Cooper has always admired Suzuki\u2019s game and has consistently spoken well of him. One game won\u2019t destroy the impression Suzuki made on the man he hopes will be his coach in Milan two months from now.<\/p>\n
\u201cI really got to meet him in Calgary this summer, so that was the first time I really got to sit down and have conversations with him. Really bright and intelligent kid,\u201d Cooper said of Suzuki. \u201cAnother part of it is I\u2019ve been with Marty (St. Louis), I\u2019ve been his coach, we\u2019ve fostered a friendship, he\u2019s a colleague now, and I really, really respect him and his mind for the game. You watch him, and he\u2019s played in the Olympics, and you see the way he uses Suzuki, and it\u2019s a lot. So that\u2019s always a good sign.\u201d<\/p>\n
After Suzuki was done answering questions about this \u201cembarrassing\u201d loss, after he was done talking about how a young team is prone to deflating moments and how a team that began the season as the youngest team in the league has only gotten younger because of injuries to Kaiden Guhle, Kirby Dach, Alex Newhook and Patrik Laine, Suzuki was gathering his things when we snuck in one more question.<\/p>\n
Did he get up for this game a little bit more because he was facing the Canadian Olympic coach?<\/p>\n
Suzuki didn\u2019t hear the question at first. He asked for it to be repeated. And once he was sure he heard it right, he paused momentarily as he began walking to the refuge of the players\u2019 lounge.<\/p>\n
He put a resigned look on his face and nodded as he continued walking toward that refuge. This was a big game for him. And his team let him down.<\/p>\n
Suzuki wasn\u2019t perfect. He\u2019s definitely had better games. But his Olympic candidacy will not be judged by one game.<\/p>\n
Yet that was still a motivational factor for the Canadiens, and they failed to live up to the moment. They forced management to act as though they\u2019d been punched in the mouth.<\/p>\n