Has Alexei Kovalev Played His Last Game In A Canadiens Jersey?
Shocking news out of Montreal today. It seems that we won’t be seeing Alexei Kovalev in a Canadiens jersey on Montreal’s road trip that will see them face Alex Ovechkin’s Washington Capitals and Sidney Crosby’s Pittsburgh Penguins.
Yes, GM Bob Gainey has stepped in and has told Kovalev he needn’t bother accompanying the team on this road trip. Is Bob Gainey merely sending a stern message to the underperforming Russian star, or is there a deeper meaning behind making Kovalev a healthy scratch at a time when the Canadiens are struggling to keep their tentative grasp on a playoff spot.
There is some speculation in media circles that Kovalev may have played his final game in a Montreal Canadiens jersey and that Gainey may be working the phones in an effort to ship Kovalev off to the highest bidder.
Whatever the truth of the matter the fact remains that Kovalev has certainly been a disappointment this season, and if the Canadiens slip out of the playoff race Kovalev’s lack of production will be a major reason why. In a hockey-mad city like Montreal the pressure on Gainey in any given year is tremendous, but this season, with the fabled club celebrating its 100th anniversary it is even more extreme. If the Canadiens were to miss the playoffs it would be nothing short of disastrous. Gainey cannot afford the luxury of allowing Kovalev to float through the rest of the season, and he has made a gutsy move to try and jumpstart his team.
If the trade rumors are false and we do see Kovalev in a Canadiens jersey again it will be interesting to see what sort of effect the benching will have on him. Will he be motivated to prove Gainey wrong, or will he sulk while his play deteriorates even further. Anything is possible with the enigmatic Russian, and the fate of the Canadiens may just rest on Alexei Kovalev’s response to Gainey’s experiment.
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