- Martin St. Louis signed a new four-year contract that keeps him in Montreal through 2029-30
- It is the Canadiens’ third piece of business in three days, after Chris Kreider and Zachary Bolduc
- Read below for how Pierre LeBrun broke down the terms and what St. Louis has built since 2022
Montreal wrapped up a busy weekend by taking care of the guy running the bench.
The Canadiens signed Martin St. Louis to a four-year contract on Monday, keeping him behind the bench through the 2029-30 season. He had one year left on a club option the team had already picked up. That year is gone now, torn up and folded into the new deal.
The club kept the length and the money to itself, so Pierre LeBrun filled in the math:
General manager Kent Hughes explained the decision in the team’s release.
“Marty has done a terrific job leading our young team. He is a great communicator and teacher. We look forward to his continued efforts to mold this group into a championship-caliber team.”
Last season is the reason. The Habs went 48-24-10 for 106 points and finished third in the Atlantic, then knocked out Tampa Bay and Buffalo in back-to-back seven-game series before Carolina ended the run in five in the Eastern Conference Final.
The climb has been steady every year. Montreal went from 68 points in 2022-23 to 76 in 2023-24, then 91 and a playoff berth in 2024-25, then 106. St. Louis was a Jack Adams finalist for that 91-point season, finishing third behind Spencer Carbery and Scott Arniel.
Kreider signed on Saturday. Bolduc got four years on Sunday. St. Louis got his extension Monday, which means the group that reached the conference final comes back with the same voice running it:
None of this came out of nowhere. Owner Geoff Molson said in August that he wanted his coach around long term, and Hughes spent the last few weeks turning that into signatures.
St. Louis sits at 163-155-47 in the regular season in Montreal and 10-14 in the playoffs. He took the job on an interim basis on Feb. 9, 2022, then became the 32nd coach in franchise history that June.
Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield and Lane Hutson are all signed long term. Their coach now runs through the same stretch.
