Martin St-Louis Responds to Patrik Laine’s Self-Criticism After Hat Trick

Despite scoring three goals in a game against the Buffalo Sabres, Patrik Laine was surprisingly critical of his performance during the post-game press conference. The Finnish forward didn’t hold back, labeling his play as “very average” and expressing dissatisfaction with his overall contribution.

Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!

Here’s what Laine had to say about his performance:

“If we ignore the goals, I’ve played millions of better games where I didn’t score a single goal. On the power play, the puck went in. Other than that, I’d say it was a pretty average performance for me today.”

Martin St-Louis Reacts

Not long after Laine’s comments, Montreal Canadiens head coach Martin St-Louis was asked for his perspective. Unlike Laine, St-Louis took a more measured approach to evaluating the performance.

“He’s honest, but I didn’t hate him at five-on-five. I don’t think he played a bad game. His pace is improving, and Newy is helping him with that,” St-Louis shared via TVA Sports.

He elaborated further, emphasizing the natural progression of chemistry between teammates:

“They’re learning to play together, and that’s something that happens organically. You can give them some guidelines, but you have to be careful not to over-direct them.”

A Memorable Post-Game Takeaway

The contrast between Laine’s harsh self-assessment and St-Louis’s more optimistic evaluation highlighted the balance between self-awareness and personal growth. While Laine has every right to push himself, it’s worth remembering his long road back to form after limited playing time over the past year and a half.

Ultimately, despite his self-criticism, Laine’s performance was nothing short of impressive, and he has plenty to build on moving forward.