Photo credit: Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images
Montreal Canadiens head coach Martin St-Louis granted fans’ wish late in yesterday’s game by adjusting his usual strategy with a two-goal lead.
Martin St-Louis adjusted his usual late-game strategy against the Tampa Bay Lightning, opting for a different approach with the Canadiens holding a two-goal lead.
On social media, observers quickly noticed a significant change as Cole Caufield took the ice with the net empty.
Usually, number 13 stays firmly on the bench in this type of scenario.
The coaching staff normally prefers to use defensive specialists to shut things down.
This time, the objective seemed completely different for the Canadiens’ bench boss.
The Lightning were desperately trying to tie the game by pulling their goalie, and Martin St-Louis ultimately decided to give Caufield a chance to score his first empty-net goal of the season.
Caufield on the ice with the net empty…
Martin St-Louis supports Cole Caufield’s 50-goal chase with a rare empty-net opportunity
Sending the sniper into the action clearly shows a desire to help him reach that milestone.
Caufield still has not scored a single empty-net goal since the start of the season. which is quite remarkable!
Reaching the 50-goal mark represents a massive achievement in the NHL, and Martin St-Louis knows it very well!
In the stands, fans had been asking for this opportunity for several weeks.
Giving a scorer the chance to boost his stats is common practice across the NHL.
Now it remains to be seen whether this strategy will be repeated in upcoming Montreal Canadiens games.
Fans will be watching the closing moments of games with great interest.
Previously on Montreal Hockey Fanatics
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Surprising decision by Martin St-Louis vs Lightning sparks strong reaction from Canadiens fans
Do you agree with Martin St-Louis using Cole Caufield late in the game with an empty net to boost his goal total?