Laine Injured In Canadiens Defeat

Did Patrik Laine's words make him a target in Columbus?

Patrik Laine has clearly breathed new life into this edition of the Montreal Canadiens since pulling on the CH sweater for the first time om December 3rd. 'Patty' has single-handedly remade the Montreal power play registering eight power play goals in his first nine games for the Habs. And No. 92 has earned the respect and admiration of his new teammates by his talent, his fashion and running commentary on the bench.

But what about his former teammates?

Over the past ten days, the Canadiens have made stops in Winnipeg and Columbus giving the 26-year-old an opportunity to face the teams of his two previous NHL stops. Laine created a minor stir in Winnipeg poking fun at Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck suggesting that the Vezina Trophy winner was avoiding him.

"I don’t know if Helle’s playing," said Laine. "I really hope so. Oh, he is? I love that. The last two times I’ve been here, I don’t think he’s played. He’s had the 'Patty flu.' I mean, it’s understandable."

The comments were seen as good-natured ribbing with the fans at Canada Life Centre giving 'Patty' a warm welcome back to the Manitoba capital. In his first head-to-head matchup against his former teammate, Hellebuyck did his talking on the ice, blanking Laine on his seven shots on goal on December 14th.

Things took a decidedly darker tone when Laine came to the microphones on Monday morning ahead of the Canadiens match with the Blue Jackets. After the morning skate, when asked why he requested a trade out of Columbus, Laine seemed to accuse the Blue Jackets organization of tolerating a losing culture.

According to The Athletic's Aaron Portzline, Laine said "I feel like we were just doing the same thing year after year. I was tired of losing and just giving up when it’s December to start focusing on next year. I’m not going to do that. That’s frustrating as a player when you’re trying to win and some people are, you know, not like that."

“They’re a little too satisfied and too comfortable where they’re at. It wasn’t really a fit for me anymore," added Laine.

When asked about the reaction he expected from fans at Nationwide Arena, Laine said that he didn't care what they thought about him.

"No clue. It’s not that I’ve lost any sleep over it. Hopefully it’s positive. If it’s not, I really don’t care. If guys are going to be pissed off and bitter about something, that’s your issue. I’m having a great time regardless, and I don’t care what other people are saying," said Laine.

But the Canadiens winger did not stop there. He went on to say, "It’ll be cool to shut ’em down. There’s always idiots who [boo]. Hopefully not the entire building, with everything I did here for the community and for the team. If somebody feels like they want to boo, I feel like they’ve got bigger issues going on than me coming back here."

It's not surprising that Laine's blunt words filtered back to the Columbus locker room and to the fans at Nationwide Arena. As a result, the 5th Line boo'ed Laine each time he touched the puck. And Laine took a thumping from his former teammates.

While none of the four hits directed at Laine in the first period crossed the line, his night was done. He did not return to the ice after the first intermission. The Canadiens announced that Laine had suffered an upper body injury.

Head coach Marty St. Louis downplayed the connection between Laine's words and the treatment he received. "He's a dangerous player. If we played against him, I would tell my players to be tough with him," said St. Louis.

Without their hot hand on the power play, Montreal went 0-for-2 with the man advantage and dropped an opportunity for a fourth consecutive win. They dropped a 5-4 decision to the Blue Jackets in their final game before the Christmas break.

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