The Montreal Canadiens got a big boost on Saturday when coaching consultant Roger Grillo returned to the team after his battle with cancer, and the players made sure to acknowledge it in the best possible way.
After each game this season, the Montreal Canadiens players crown a “man of the match” who gets to wear their now-famous wolf pelt. On Saturday, in a 7-3 win over the New York Islanders, there were plenty of candidates for the title. Cole Caufield had scored a hat trick and added a pair of assists, and Juraj Slafkovsky had four points, just like Nick Suzuki. Kaiden Guhle had his best game of the season, but none of them were crowned. No, alternate captain Brendan Gallagher elected to give it to coaching consultant Roger Grillo.
Grillo, who joined the Canadiens’ coaching staff before the start of the 2024-25 season, was diagnosed with cancer earlier this season and had to leave the team to battle the disease. This weekend, he returned to the team, and clearly, the players felt that his accomplishment was more worthy of acknowledgement than anything that happened on the ice on Saturday night.
After Gallagher handed him the wolf pelt, the coaching consultant proudly put it on while the players clapped and cheered. Grillo said he felt bad taking it away from a top line that combined for 13 points and invited Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, and Juraj Slafkovsky for a group hug before saying, “Thank you, guys! I love you.”
As for coach Martin St-Louis, when he was asked about Grillo’s return, he said:
That news [Grillo’s diagnosis] five or six months ago, we didn’t know which way it would go. Things went well for him; he had all of his treatments, and he’ll be with us for the rest of the year. I think that was a good boost for the group today. This morning, the guys saw him and everything. He’s one of my best friends, and we have a tight-knit group. They were really happy to see him under these circumstances. He got through his battle, and he’s now back with us; that was a boost for sure. I’m happy he’s back, and things are heading the right way.
As important as the two points from Saturday night’s game were, they’re nothing compared to the fight for his life that Grillo had to face. At the end of the day, hockey may be a big business, but it remains just a game, and it’s great to see that the group has its priorities straight.
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